Candidate wants to tap into women’s vote base in Oman elections

Fuente: 
Gulf News
Fecha de publicación: 
02 Oct 2015

Muscat: In high spirits and with a relentless pursuit to compete in the next Shura Council election in Oman, to be held on October 25, Balqees Al Nadabi, one of the 20 women vying for seats in the election nationwide, is ready for the race.

She is among 10 candidates of Baushar province in Muscat for the next election, but faces stiff competition from Mohammad Al Busaidi, a popular former member of the Shura from her constituency, who is also a candidate for the next elections.

Out of the ten candidates who are running in Baushar, a province of Muscat Governorate, only two will be elected to the council.

Fatma Al Harthi is the other female contender for a Shura council seat in Baushar.

Balqees, who is a member of Oman Women’s Association and an MBA student, told Gulf News that she continues her campaign for the next election despite her busy life.

Balqees’s campaign slogan is: “The woman is a partner in development. With your vote, the march is completed.”

This is the first time for Balqees to compete for the Shura election and she has great confidence in her ability to make it to the halls of the council.

She has prepared herself by taking courses in parliamentary work such as electoral process management, developing social initiatives and the electoral marketing.

Balqees said that she will be focused on the community culture as well as promotion of the intellectual awareness, especially among young people and children.

“Youth need more recreational and educational places like libraries as well more clubs in Baushar to practice their hobbies.” said Balqees.

Balqees believes that gender is no longer a barrier to political participation in Oman.

”The Omani woman has now fully realised her role in society and will not give up her right to reach out for a seat on the Council,” she said.

She, however, lamented lingering role of tribalism in voter behaviour.

Tribal influence in voter behaviour, she said, is likely to continue in the coming elections, adding that “it will take years” for voters to realise the importance of picking the right candidate regardless of tribal background.

The number of candidates in this year’s elections stands at 596.

Dhofar is the governorate with the highest number of candidates at 126, followed by Dhakliyah (Interior) with 77, Muscat 70, South Batinah 61 and North Batinah 60.

The rest of the candidates come from other parts of the country.

Of the registered candidates, 64 per cent belong to the 30 to 44 age group. In terms of education, 38.1 per cent of the candidates are secondary school graduates, 36.6 per cent are university graduates and 2.8 per cent hold PhDs.

The number of eligible voters in the elections stands at 600,000.

The Omani Shura Council was established in 1991 to replace the Consultative State Council, which lasted from 1981 until 1991.

Majlis Al Shura is the lower house of the council of Oman and has enjoyed some legislative and regulatory powers since 2011.

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