Myanmar parliament speaker calls for high-quality service in new legislative body

Myanmar's current parliament speaker U Shwe Mann has called on fresh parliamentarians to strive to ensure high-quality service in the new legislative body, taking lessons from previous parliamentary activities, an official report said Friday.

Speaking at a work coordination meeting of the central committee for planning the first regular session of the new parliament in Nay Pyi Taw Thursday, U Shwe Mann stressed the need for the emergence of a multi-party democracy and market economy in accordance with the aspiration of the people and with the constitution in order for the country to stay abreast of other countries.

The next term of sessions of the House of Representatives (Lower House) and the House of Nationalities (Upper House) of the parliament, produced through Nov. 8 general election 2015, are to begin on Feb.1, according to an announcement of the parliament.

The current term of the parliament, which was produced through the 2010 general election and ran from 2011, will expire on Jan. 30.

Preparatory work is underway to transfer parliamentary duties to freshers.

Meanwhile, the election-winning opposition National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi, is making inter-party coordination to nominate the president of the country without prompt disclosure of the nominee.

The winning party is expected to release the list of the new government including that of the president, two vice presidents and ministers before the next parliament's first session begins on Feb. 1.

Myanmar held a general election to elect representatives in Nov. 8, 2015. In accordance with the election result, the NLD won the absolute majority of the parliamentary seats, which is strong enough for it to form a new government independently under the constitution and has right to nominate the president and two vice presidents.

Suu Kyi herself also won as a representative re-elected to the Lower House of the next parliament.

In the general election, the NLD won 880 parliamentary seats or 77.3 percent out of a total of 1,139 at three levels of parliament, shared by 254 or 79 percent are in the House of Representatives (Lower House), 135 or 80 percent in the House of Nationalities (Upper House) and 474 or 75.7 percent in the Region or State Parliament as well as 17 ethnic representatives to the Region or State Parliament.