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29 March 2024

FNC poll candidates' registration on Aug 16

Published
By Staff

The registration of candidates who intend to run for the Federal National Elections 2015 will start on Sunday, August 16, and will take place for five days until August 20 at registration centres set up by the National Election Committee (NEC) across the UAE.

The registration centres in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi will be located at Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Abu Dhabi, Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain, and Baynunah Institute of Science and Technology in the western region.

Dubai will have a registration centre at the Dubai World Trade Centre, while in Sharjah it will be located in the office of the Advisory Council of the Emirate of Sharjah. The Ras Al Khaimah centre will operate in the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Community Development building, the Umm Al Quwain centre will be in the office of the Executive Council of the Emirate while the Fujairah centre will be located in Fujairah Chamber of Industry and Commerce building. The registration centre in Ajman will be based at the Humaid bin Rashid Hall in Ajman Museum. These centres will be open for registration from 8am to 3pm.

Each member of the Electoral College has the right to run for the elections based on the following constitutional conditions: should be a citizen residing permanently in one of the emirates; should be aged not less than 25 years (born on October 2 in 1990 and earlier); should have good character and reputation; should not have been convicted for any offence (unless has been rehabilitated in accordance with the law), and should be literate.

Commenting on the preparations being made by the National Election Committee to receive the nominations, Tariq Hilal Lootah, Undersecretary of the Ministry of State for Federal National Council Affairs and Chairman of the Election Management Committee, said the registration centres all across the country are in a high state of preparedness to ensure smooth registration process for the candidates.

Lootah said: "The Committee and all its teams are fully ready to begin this pivotal stage of the electoral process. We will ensure the efficient registration of the candidates in line with the regulatory conditions specified in the executive instructions for the elections. The Committee aims to implement all stages of the electoral process with the highest degree of professionalism."

As per the procedure set by the NEC, potential candidates can submit the nomination to contest for the elections either in person or through a representative to the Emirates Committee of their respective emirate. Commenting on the provision, HE Lootah said the representative need not be a member of the Electoral College or from the same emirate as the candidate but must mandatorily be a UAE citizen. The representative must also be literate and must carry proof in the form of an academic certificate.

According to the executive instructions issued by the NEC, it is incumbent on all those who wish to run for the elections to the Federal National Council to submit their application to the Committee in their respective emirate. In order to complete the registration process, Electoral College members are required to bring their Emirates ID Card, family book, and a certificate of good conduct addressed to the NEC, as well as a non-refundable registration fee of Dh1,000 in cash. If the application for registration is made by a representative, the representative is required to carry his or her Emirates ID Card.

 Individuals holding a public post, whether federal or local, as well as those in military who are looking to contest in the elections should provide a certificate that shows they have received leave of absence from work from the date of announcement of the final list of candidates (31/08/2015) until the date of the elections (03/10/2015). Members of the judiciary who intend to run for the elections must provide a certificate proving their resignation from their job with a request to run for the elections. As for the current members of the Federal National Council who wish to contest in the elections, their membership will cease from the date of announcement of the final list of candidates.

According to the timetable for elections of the Federal National Council in 2015, the NEC will declare the preliminary list of candidates on August 23, and announce the final list on August 31. The candidate can withdraw their candidacy no later than September 14.

The registration of candidates and the issue of the final list of candidates will mark the entry of the electoral process into a new phase. Citizens outside the country will be allowed to vote in embassies abroad over two days - on September 20 and 21. There is provision for early voting for three days from September 28 to 30.