With less than a week for the third Municipal Council elections, the scene is warming up with the candidates going about meeting voters with billboards being displayed on some of the streets in Oman.
As many as 727 candidates, including 28 women, are in the fray contesting the elections which were postponed from June this year to December, through a special Royal Decision.
Voting for voters outside of the Sultanate of Oman for the Municipal Council will take place on Sunday December 18, while voting for voters within the Sultanate of Oman will take place on Sunday, December 25, according to Article 1 and 2 of the Municipal Council elections in the Municipal Councils Law, respectively.
Nearly 731,767 voters, including 347,965 women will be casting their ballots for the Municipal Council elections for the third term, via the website www.elections.om.
The Ministry of Interior has launched a mobile application ‘Intakhib’ for voters to vote for the elections of members of Municipal Council for the third term recently and voters will be able to cast their votes to choose who represents them in the membership of the Municipal Council at a click.
The ministry has also given sufficient days for registration in the electoral register for the elections and the shifting of registration from one wilayat to another.
“Candidates may carry out election campaigns to introduce themselves from its date till the penultimate day of voting based on the Article 41 of the Municipal Council elections regulation,” a spokesperson from the Elections Committee said, adding, “they can use billboards, print media and other means of communication as electoral advertising media.”
The Municipal Council of Muscat Municipality is said to be the real beginning and the first nucleus for the establishment of the Municipal Councils in various governorates of the Sultanate.
The first Municipal Councils were elected under the Royal Decree No 116/2011 in October-November 2011, under which the Minister of the Diwan of Royal Court was commissioned to issue regulations for the implementation of its provisions.
Later, based on a Diwan Resolution No 115/2012 issued on March 25, 2012, the chairman, vice-chairman and secretary, as well as the employment system in the Council and committees, the members’ rights and duties, administrative and financial affairs of the Council and the election of the Council members representing the wilayats of the governorate were established.
Aimed at representing the citizens at the Municipal level and bringing their voice to the government, the Council also represents the aspiring ambitions of citizens, through the significant terms of reference of the Council.
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