Emphasizing the importance of broad participation in the upcoming elections in order to provide the next council with competencies and expertise that enhance its future role

10 August 2011

The media is an essential partner in political education efforts and the establishment of an electoral culture

The committee discussed many issues, on top of which was the preparation of polling centers and the electronic voting system

The National Elections Committee discussed the preparations of the Election Management Committee to prepare for the electoral process, during the committee’s seventh meeting held today under the chairmanship of His Excellency Dr. Anwar Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Minister of State for Federal National Council Affairs, Chairman of the National Elections Committee, at the Raffles Hotel.

In its meeting, the committee discussed many issues, most notably the preparation of electoral centers, the electronic voting system, and the stage of registering candidates in the period from 14-17 August 2011, in the presence of members of the National Elections Committee, the Election Management Committee, editors-in-chief of local newspapers, and a number of columnists.

His Excellency Dr. Anwar Gargash said: “The announcement of the electoral lists and the large numbers that included them came to confirm the increasing importance that the wise leadership attaches to empowering the Federal National Council and political development, and hence the importance of the electoral bodies’ participation in the upcoming elections, to provide the Council with competencies and expertise that enhance its role.” It fulfills the aspirations and aspirations of the Emirati people.”

He added: "Active and broad participation in the Federal National Council elections 2011 is necessary to support this step, as the amount and nature of participation will be reflected in the directions of parliamentary work in the coming stages, and we hope that all members of electoral bodies will exercise their electoral right and choose their representatives on logical and practical bases that increase From the balance of the parliament and activate its discussions in the next legislative term.

His Excellency Anwar Gargash said: "We are now very close to the polling day for the Federal National Council elections, and the sub-committees emanating from the National Elections Committee are working on completing all the equipment and preparations that will bring the electoral process out in a way that adds to the great success that was achieved in the first electoral experience in the year 2006." ".

He added: "In the seventh meeting of the National Elections Committee, we decided to involve the local media in attending the meeting to inform them of the latest ongoing preparations and equipment, and to give them an integrated picture of the volume of work done and the efforts made to present an honorable electoral model for the United Arab Emirates and its people, and the media is considered the mirror of society and a true partner." At work, it must be dealt with on this basis, especially since we are in an early stage of political education, hence the role of local media in contributing to awareness efforts and spreading political culture among members of society.

During the meeting, the committee reviewed a detailed report on the preparation of electoral centers, where 13 centers were approved distributed in various regions of the country. The distribution of polling centers took into account a number of main factors, namely the number of electoral bodies, geographical distribution, ease of access to the center and its visibility to the public. The committee also discussed the details of how to The design of the centers and the steps to work in them from the moment the voter arrives at the center until the moment he leaves.

The electoral centers were distributed as follows: Abu Dhabi with four centers in each of the exhibition grounds, Al Ain and the western region, and a fourth center to be determined later, and Dubai with two centers in the exhibition grounds and the Dubai World Trade Center, and three centers in Sharjah in the Sharjah Expo Center, Maliha and Khor Fakkan, while a center was determined One electorate in each of Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain.

The meeting witnessed a briefing on the workers in the polling centers, due to the great importance of the human cadres in contributing to the implementation of the electoral process. These cadres are divided into two parts, the first is related to the technical side, and the second is related to volunteers. The committee signed a partnership agreement with the Takatof program to manage and distribute volunteers to the centers. Elections in the various emirates of the country, with the aim of organizing voluntary work in an institutional manner that ensures the smooth conduct of the electoral process without any obstacles.

The National Elections Committee also reviewed a report on the electronic voting system and the voting steps that were adopted, as the Election Management Committee chose the system that will be applied this year in line with the requirements of the country in addition to the nature of the election procedures, and the system allows the results to be announced completely separately for each emirate separately. It is a secure system and does not allow the voter to vote more than once.

During its meeting, the committee discussed a report on introductory seminars for electoral bodies, which included various regions in the country, with the aim of defining the general rules for elections, presenting the timetable and mechanisms for managing the electoral process, and explaining the legal and organizational information for nomination and election mechanisms.

The Committee also discussed the approved media policy for the 2011 Federal National Council elections, where it was briefed on the efforts made in this field, especially with regard to communication with the public and contributing to awareness efforts and spreading the electoral political culture among members of the Emirati community.

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