Opposition RNM committed to boycotting Sudan elections
February 2, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The Reform Now Movement (RNM) led by Ghazi Salah al-Din reaffirmed its decision to boycott the general elections scheduled for April and vowed to seek to coordinate opposition stances towards national issues.
The NCF said it will launch a campaign next Wednesday to boycott elections through parallel poll centers, pointing that the campaign will encompass addressing people in commercial markets and places of public gatherings to urge them to boycott the elections.
“Leave” is the slogan picked by NCF for the campaign and people will be using ballot papers with “I am boycotting” written on them.
On Sunday, the pro-government Sudan Media Centre (SMC) quoted leading RNM figure Osama Tawfiq as saying that his movement disavowed the election boycott campaign, saying the campaign is only restricted to signatories of the “Sudan Call” charter.
However, Tawfiq later denied SMC’s claims, saying the RNM remains committed to boycotting elections.
“We have not dissociated ourselves from the election boycott campaign and will not repudiate it,” he added.
Tawfic further said they are committed to coordinate with all opposition forces to boycott the elections by available peaceful means, saying the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) is wasting time and money in elections in which results are known in advance.
RNP leading figure, Mahmoud al-Gamal, for his part, asserted to Sudan Tribune that his movement remains committed to its decision to boycott elections, saying they will work with other opposition forces to unify positions towards national issues.
He pointed that all political forces including the armed movements need to agree on an unequivocal and well-defined program of national consensus in order to spare the country further problems.
“Opposition forces have a strong will to converge in spite of the confusion in the political scene and [we] should impartially work towards [uniting all political forces],” he said
Another leading RNM figure, Hassan Rizg, had earlier told Sudan Tribune that they agree with the NCF on boycotting elections, but added the two sides have not coordinated on the latter’s campaign to achieve that purpose.
On Saturday, the NCP described plans by opposition parties to launch a campaign next Wednesday to boycott elections as an “anarchist project” which will be rejected by Sudanese people.
Sudan’s interior minister, Esmat Abdel-Rahman, warned last Wednesday that police will not allow any attempts to destabilise security or disturb the atmosphere of the elections.
The NCP rejects calls by Sudanese political forces to postpone the general elections scheduled for April until after the national dialogue and formation of a transitional government, saying it is a constitutional requirement that must be met.
For its part, the National Elections Commission (NEC) said that it is the only body mandated to organise the ballot under the constitution and downplayed opposition boycott calls.
NEC official al-Hadi Mohamed Ahmed told SMC that there is no legal basis for opposition plan to hold parallel elections.
(ST)