No posters no advertisements, just social media

Abu Dhabi: Despite the permission to spend up to Dh2 million on campaigning, Reem Al Otaiba has decided not to spend a fils while on her political journey to be elected as part of the Federal National Council (FNC).

Reem, who is contesting the election from Abu Dhabi, is optimistic about the electorate and believes she has enough support to win without advertisements and posters, as she wants to be more environmentally friendly and take advantage of technology.

“I am not belittling other candidates who are funding their campaigns, but I do believe I have a strong presence on social media,” she stated.

Confident when it comes to her supporters, Reem revealed where she will be investing the capital instead, regardless of whether she wins or not. “I feel as though this money can do something more beneficial for society ... It should be spent towards a cause such as sponsoring a student,” she told Gulf News.

Elaborating on her campaign strategy, in addition to her open discussions on social media, she is inviting potential voters to her home for talks about her political goals. Her home is the centre of her campaign and Reem has been accepting visitors since Thursday (September 10) and plans to continue until before the election begins.

FNC candidates are allowed to campaign until September 30 for the FNC elections on October 3. Preliminary results be announced on October 3 and the final list of winners will be disclosed on October 11, if no election run-offs are required.

The most important political change Reem will emphasise is upholding laws which empower women, especially regarding cases of divorce.

“I would like the UAE’s laws to be more sympathetic towards women in need,” she stated.

When it comes to work-life balance, women need to be given more attention. Reem would expand the duration of maternity leave for at least four months and believes in the need to provide help to working mothers in caring for children. Housewives should be granted an income as well.

Reem would like to ease the process of citizens going to court and having the ability to sue someone. Currently, it is difficult to deal with a situation legally when overcoming a situation to do with ill will, she explained.

Secondly, consumer rights have to be heightened to an international standard. “For example, in retail, a lot of customers don’t know their rights in terms of buying a product and being able to return it,” she stated.

Reem expressed the need for more support in higher education and retirement.

An aspect of society which lacks attention is supporting student prodigies, which needs to change. Moreover, higher education should develop in such a way that accepts as many students as possible without any biases, she stated.

Lastly, the retirement programme has affected Reem on a personal level as she witnesses senior citizens struggling and would therefore revise the pension agenda for increased assistance when dealing with the elder demographic.

As a result, Reem intends to win the votes of both younger and senior citizens. When speaking of the expectations of the race, she predicts: “I expect there will be a lot of women winning and I see that this race is interesting because we have reached a level of maturity when it comes to elections. Especially with the current situation in Yemen, people have added to their patriotism and there will be a big turnout this year.”

Reem attained her bachelors and masters from Zayed University (ZU) in social sciences and international relations. She studied for her business administration doctorate at Abu Dhabi University.

Career-wise, she was an intern for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and has taught at ZU pro bono on global issues for three semesters.

Adding to her list of professions, Reem has worked for Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and is currently working in crude oil sales.

Answering potential voters’ questions through Twitter and Instagram

Answering inquiries about political goals

Seen an increase in Twitter followers

- Heidi Pullyard is a trainee at Gulf News