Nay Pyi Taw, Feb 5 (IANS) The two houses of Myanmar’s newly-elected parliament are scheduled to commence their first session in Nay Pyi Taw on February 8, an official announced on Friday.
The sessions of the regional or state parliaments will begin separately in 14 respective regions or states on the same day, the official said.
During the session, the Union Parliament — comprising House of Representatives (Lower House) and House of Nationalities (Upper House) — will also set the announcement date of presidential nomination list to elect the country’s new president and vice president, Xinhua news agency reported.
The two houses began their first sessions with election of their respective speakers and deputy speakers.
The first session of the new houses came nearly three months after the general election on November 8, last year, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD) party, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, won absolute majority in parliament.
The president will be elected by the Presidential Electoral College which is to be formed with three groups of the Union Parliament members, respectively representing the Lower House, the Upper House and the military.
Each group is to first elect a candidate from MPs or non-parliament members by voting, and a president will be elected from among the three candidates.
As winner of last year’s general election, the NLD bagged 886 seats or 77 percent of the total 1,150 parliamentary seats at the three levels of parliament, and the party will compete mainly against the military junta-backed former ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party.