The National Election Committee (NEC) held its 13th meeting in the presence of Dr. Anwar Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Minister of State for Federal National Council Affairs, and Chairman of the NEC. The meeting, which began with prayers for the martyred men of the UAE armed forces, expressed sincere condolences to the leadership of the UAE and its people as well as the armed forces and the families of the martyrs.

The NEC had earlier announced the approval of the polling stations in the UAE and abroad for the Federal National Council Elections on 3rd October 2015. The list includes 94 stations in UAE diplomatic missions, including embassies and consulates.

The Committee also discussed the readiness of the centres to receive the voters as well as the voting mechanism and the steps taken to keep voters abroad informed about the electoral process.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Gargash pointed out that the process of voting from abroad is a new experience for the country, and said it would help strengthen the electoral experience of the UAE.

Dr. Gargash said polling stations abroad will receive voters on the specified elections days from 10:00 am until 6:00 pm as per the local time of the respective countries. All the centres are ready to receive voters on the dates approved for early vote, and the NEC has put in place all precautions to ensure the success of the voting process, he said.

Dr. Gargash added that the centres had been provided with procedural guide, system of printing ballot papers and the methodology of counting votes. He pointed out that the NEC will also set up an operations room in the UAE to communicate with embassies to provide timely support and advice.

During the meeting, the Committee was briefed on a comprehensive report on the polling stations and facilities that have been developed to facilitate the electoral process. The polling stations were selected after a detailed assessment of a number of aspects such as geographical distribution of electoral authorities and the availability of service and infrastructural requirements. Other aspects include the compliance of polling stations to approved designs and criteria, and sufficient availability of parking spaces and other facilities for voters.

The Committee was briefed on a presentation of the Technical Committee on the electronic voting system to identify all possible scenarios on the Election Day in order to ensure smooth electoral process.

The Committee also approved a set of decisions, including the formation of committees of polling stations abroad, the selection of their headquarters, and the decision to form a central committee to count the votes.

On the occasion, the NEC also conveyed its gratitude to the General Secretariat of the FNC for facilitating a series of training workshops for candidates over three days to enhance their skills to manage and plan their election campaign. The workshops drew their attention to a number of important aspects related to the electoral process.
Source: WAM