Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – Two National Democratic Force MPs Dr. Than Win and Khin Maung Win have applied to rejoin the National League for Democracy (NLD), fresh from its by-election landslide victory last week.
Than Win, an MP for the North Okkalapa Township constituency, won in the 2010 general election.“The important point is that the NDF was formed because the NLD did not contest [in the 2010 elections]. The engine of the ship stopped, so we had to take a lifeboat. We just filled the ‘vacant political space.’ Now, we don’t need to fill it anymore,”
said Dr. Than Win. “Now, the engine of the ship is working and so we don’t need lifeboats anymore. We can get on the ship.”
Than Win served as the vice chairman of the NLD Rangoon Region. In the 1990 general-election, he was also elected as MP [NLD’s MP] of North Okkalapa constituency. Before he resigned from NDF, he was chairman of the NDF parliament working committee.
Khin Maung Win was the vice chairman of NDF parliamentary working committee.
“In my opinion, I think it’ll be better that all of us are members of a leading party and united rather than if we are members of breakaway groups,” Khin Maung Win told Mizzima. He won a parliamentary seat in Lanmadaw Township constituency in the 2010 general election.
In December, MP Kyi Myint of Latha Township constituency resigned from the New National League for Democracy (NNLD) to rejoin the NLD.
Kyi Myint won in the 1990 general election as an NLD candidate from the Latha constituency. He joined the NDF when the NLD decided not to re-register for the 2010 election. Then he formed his own NNLD party after he had differences with the NDF party.
Dr. Myat Nyarna Soe, an MP of the NDF, also resigned from his party in December 2011 to rejoin the NLD. Presently, he holds a seat representing Rangoon Region Upper House constituency No. 4.
The NLD contested for 44 constituencies in the recent by-elections and won 43 parliamentary seats: 37 Lower House seats; four Upper House seats; and two region/state assembly seats. With Myat Nyarna Soe, the NLD now holds five seats in the Upper House.
