Locals demand reappointment of administrator fired after row with NLD official 

By Aung Kaung Zaw 23 Sep 2020

Aung Kaung Zaw | DMG
23 September, Manaung 

Locals in the Yan Thit Gyi village-tract are calling for the reappointment of their recently sacked administrator, who was dismissed after quarrelling with an information officer for the National League for Democracy (NLD) in Ramree Township, Arakan State. 

More than 170 villagers signed a petition demanding that the relevant authorities return the village-tract administrator to his former position, said U Than Win, a resident of Sit Pyar village in the Yan Thit Gyi village-tract. 

“The quarrel between them is not related to a political party or group. It was their personal problem. He should not be dismissed [from his administrator position],” U Than Win said. 

The village-tract includes the villages of Sit Pyar, Yan Thit Gyi and Ywar Ma, with a population of more than 3,000. 

The village-tract administrator was dismissed on September 9 in a decision that was the outcome of a meeting of the Arakan State government. 

The quarrel at the centre of the administrator’s firing was reportedly over a plan late last month to issue free ID cards at Sit Pyar village, where the administrator’s insistence on crowd-control measures for the programme put him at odds with the NLD official.

The Arakan State government decided to dismiss the administrator because he allegedly threw bricks and other objects at the information officer during the altercation. 

Residents also do not accept the process of selecting a replacement administrator, U Than Win said. 

U Win Maung, a 10-household head in Sit Pyar village, said dismissing the village-tract administrator amid an ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and leading up to the November 8 general election could be detrimental to the overarching public interest.  

“There was no intention to insult the political party or to cause hurt to a group during their quarrel. It is not reasonable that he was dismissed because of a personal issue,” he said. “Villagers want him as their village administrator. The government needs to review it.” 

DMG phoned Ramree Township administrator U Tun Lin Aung for comment on the villagers’ demand, but he responded that he would not provide comment in an interview made over the phone. 

The village-tract administrator and the information officer have opened lawsuits against each other at the Ramree Myoma police station in Ramree town.