Mar 14, 2008 (DVB), The National Council of the Union of Burma, an umbrella organisation of exiled opposition groups, has called on the people of Burma to vote No in the constitutional referendum.

The Burmese military regime plans to hold a referendum on its proposed constitution in May this year.

Khun Myint Tun, a member of the NCUB secretariat, said pushing for a No vote was part of a strategy to oppose the regime's seven-step roadmap at every stage.

"The NCUB’s policy is to oppose the whole roadmap system of the SPDC government," he said.

"We have to oppose it at every stage and this is the basis of our decision."

Khun Myint Tun said that voting against the constitution would deny legitimacy to the government's efforts to push through their own agenda.

"The SPDC is going to force the outcome they want from the referendum and they are going to accomplish that using various methods of deception," he said.

"We are urging people to tackle them so that they cannot use loopholes to escape."

Khun Myint Tun also called on members of the Union Solidarity and Development Association to vote against the constitution.

"Among the USDA members, there are teachers, government employees, and many of them don't accept the government’s referendum," he said.

"They are certainly not in a position where they can refuse to vote in the national referendum. We would like to tell them to vote, no matter what – but vote No."

Using a football analogy, Khun Myint Tun said it was the people inside Burma who could make a difference.

"The [opposition] leaders inside the country are the strikers of the game. It is their decisions which are important," he said.

Reporting by Aye Nai