Around a hundred supporters of Mon State Chief Minister Min Min Oo gathered outside the regional government office in Moulmein on Monday, urging him to reconsider his resignation.
Amid controversies concerning his absence from state-level parliamentary sessions and allegations of cronyism, Min Min Oo announced via his Facebook page on 18 February that he was stepping down.
“I am resigning. Thank you all. It is a natural law that everything that comes to exist must have an end,” he posted on his Facebook last Friday.
Maw Maw, one of the demonstrators who joined yesterday’s rally outside Moulmein regional government office, said, “U Min Min Oo did the best he could during his tenure.
“We saw news online and in the newspapers that he is going to resign, so we came here to ask him to reconsider. Everyone gathered here today wants him to resume his duties as the regional chief minister to serve the people’s interests.”
In his resignation letter to the Burmese president dated 20 February, National League for Democracy (NLD) MP Min Min Oo said he was resigning for personal reasons.
He previously told the media a controversy over the naming of a new bridge was part of the reason for his resignation.
“I heard that he was resigning to accept responsibility for the poor performance of his administration over the past year,” said Zaw Zaw Htoo, the Paung Township MP in the Mon assembly.
Meanwhile, NLD spokesperson Win Htein said Min Min Oo was under investigation by the party concerning some public complaints against him, and that plans were afoot to dismiss him as a disciplinary measure.
“The NLD received complaints against Min Min Oo, so we formed an investigation team led by U Nyan Win to probe into these allegations. We gave our findings to the government and now he is getting dismissed as a chief minister as a disciplinary measure,” said Win Htein on Monday.
He said Min Min Oo can retain his position as an MP in the regional parliament but may face further investigation and repercussions if more complaints surface.
However, he praised the outgoing chief minister for resigning of his own accord ahead of the dismissal.
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“When we spoke to him about the chief minister post, he offered to resign with dignity without putting the blame or slandering anyone, which I think deserves to be praised. This is the kind of attitude Daw Aung San Suu Kyi values,” he said.
Win Htein said that Dr Aye Zan, the NLD’s regional assembly MP from Kyaikto Constituency 2, had been nominated to replace Min Min Oo as Mon State chief minister.
