Myanmar president pledges to respect election results

Myanmar President U Thein Sein promised on Friday to accept results of the general election to be held in the country on Sunday.

U Thein Sein made the remarks in a nationwide speech to voters via radio and TV two days ahead of the historic poll.

He said he will accept the election results and a new government emerged under the constitution, believing all political forces would also respect the results.

He urged voters to cast ballots effectively to genuinely and correctly reflect their will, while calling on government officials and employees and armed forces members to cast votes in a free and fair manner.

Only when a free and fair election involving all political forces is held, the political path toward continued reform can be carried on in a stable manner, he believed.

He also said he is prepared to meet leaders of political forces for the stability in the post-election period to ensure a smooth political transition.

Myanmar's multi-party general election is to begin across the country on Sunday with some 32 million eligible voters.

A total of 6,038 candidates from 91 parties and 310 independent runners will compete for more than 1,000 seats at three levels of the parliament.

The Union Election Commission designated 1,163 constituencies for the parliamentary vote across the country. Endit