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Shaikh Mohammed inspects FNC elections progress

Dubai - The UAE Vice President and Prime Minister urged voters to cast their ballot for the sake of the UAE without any bias or courtesy.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, today visited the polling centre for the Federal National Council (FNC) elections at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
Shaikh Mohammed inspected the progress of the electoral process and procedures to be followed by voters to elect a candidate from 329 candidates for the 16th Legislative Chapter of the FNC.
HH was briefed by the members of the National Elections Committee (NEC) about the e-voting system which started with presenting the Emirates ID, the certified personal identification issued by the Emirates Identity Authority. Voters, then, can vote in two ways, either by directly entering a candidate's number or by simply clicking on the candidate's photograph.
During the presentation, the election organisers told the vice president that 1,500 male and female volunteers were trained to guide voters in the 36 polling centres across the country. Election officials said voter turnout was good.
For his part, the Dubai Ruler said he was pleased and satisfied with the progress of the elections, which HH lauded as a successful democratic experiment during which both voters and candidates had showed a high sense of national, honest and fair responsibility.
While talking to the volunteers during his tour of the polling centre, Shaikh Mohammed urged the young Emiratis to engage in national events so as to gain extensive expertise in their practical life and be well qualified to take leadership roles in the future and act as roles model to their peers.
Lauding the electoral scene as a national celebration, the VP emphasised that democracy in the UAE is firm and deeply embedded in the conscience of the local society since the time of fathers and forefathers whom we inherited that value with pride and belief in our social, cultural and religious legacy without compromising the rich Arab-Islamic heritage.
''It is in this way we grew up in Majlises of our grandfathers, and we are bringing up our children at present in the same way to adhere to these genuine traditions and customs to be the best successor to the best predecessor and to engage citizens in every affair that touches their life, future and happiness,'' Shaikh Mohammed said.
HH stressed the importance of the citizens' rallying behind the empowerment programme launched by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan for broadening, effective political participation.
The UAE Vice President and Prime Minister urged voters to cast their ballot for the sake of the UAE without any bias or courtesy. They have the duty to elect who is capable to serve his country and its citizen and communicate the citizen's voice to the leadership with all honest and loyalty.
Shaikh Mohammed was accompanied during his tour by officials and dignitaries.