UAE | Government

Stage set for country's first FNC elections

The procedures to elect half of the members of the Federal National Council (FNC) are in place with all the emirates having named members of the electoral college, the Minister of State for FNC Affairs said yesterday.

  • By Abdul Hamid Ahmad, Editor-in-Chief
  • Published: 00:00 September 14, 2006
  • Gulf News

Abu Dhabi: The procedures to elect half of the members of the Federal National Council (FNC) are in place with all the emirates having named members of the electoral college, the Minister of State for FNC Affairs said yesterday.

Dr Anwar Gargash said there are more than 6,000 members in the college, the largest representation being from Abu Dhabi, numbering 1,500. More than 1,000 women are also members of the college.

Dr Gargash told senior journalists that the ministry will start briefing members of the electoral college next week. The election is expected to take place in December.

The decision to elect 50 per cent of the members of the 40-member FNC was announced by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan on National Day last year. The rest of the FNC members will be named by the rulers of the Emirates based on a quota.

Dr Gargash said the National Election Committee (NEC) has drawn up executive instructions to start the polling process in all polling stations. It has also designed a campaign logo a UAE national youth running towards the sun with the national flag in his hand.

The instructions on how to conduct the polling and conditions for the nominee are in line with clauses in the constitution. The electoral college reflects UAE's society and all its categories. Every emirate will have an executive committee with five members representing the municipality, the police and ruler's court. Two members will represent the public.

If members of the electoral college want to run for the FNC and if they are public servants, they must take leave for two months to campaign and contest the elections. If the candidate is in the military, he must take leave, which must be approved by the military. Candidates from the judiciary have to resign from their posts.

Secret ballot

Voting will be electronic and through secret ballot. The poll will be held over three days from 8am to 7pm. If the vote is tied, there will be a re-election for that seat. If, however, the vote is tied again, lots will be drawn to declare a winner.

Nominees must pay a fee of Dh1,000 when filing nominations and Dh3,000 if they want to contest the results. The NEC is currently working on developing mechanisms to deal with disputes and complaints against nominees. Dr Gargash said this political participation will pave the way for the complete elections of the FNC in future.

Campaign expenditure ceiling set at Dh2m

The National Election Committee (NEC) has drawn up rules for campaigning, allowing each nominee to present his manifesto in various media. The nominee will not be allowed to spend public money. The ceiling for the campaign expenditure is Dh2 million. Candidates can accept donations, provided donors are not from abroad.

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