Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has sealed his grip as Myanmar’s newest president on Friday after receiving landslide votes both from the country’s lower and upper houses of parliament.
The result is seen by many as a further step for the once Junta leader to earn international recognition of his military-led administration.
Parliament Speaker Aung Lin Dwe declared Aung Hlaing as the clear winner of Friday’s parliamentary vote, after raking in 429 out of 584 votes.
His vote tally dwarfed those of the current Prime Minister and retired general Nyo Saw, who received 126 votes, with Nan Ni Ni Aye getting 29.
Despite their loss, Saw and Ni Aye are set to be vice-presidents as per the mandate of Myanmar’s constitution, with the latter marking history as the country’s first woman vice-president.
Moreover, Aung Hlaing has initially relinquished his position as commander-in-chief as the constitution prohibits any president from simultaneously holding top military ranking.
Such a position was given to Aung Hlaing’s closest military ally, Gen. Ye Win Oo, who was once Myanmar’s intelligence chief.
Aung Hlaing is expected to be sworn in as Myanmar’s president next week.
Reaction from allies and neighbors
China, currently the military government’s closest ally, was among the first nations to send its greetings regarding Aung Hlaing’s electoral victory.
It hailed the former coup leader’s previous enthusiasm to bring Myanmar into China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.
The Chinese foreign ministry said that Beijing backs its upcoming counterparts in Myanmar based on “safeguarding national peace and stability, and realizing development and prosperity.”
The Philippine government, which currently holds chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), has vowed to continue its active engagements with Naypyidaw while pushing for peaceful efforts to end the civil war in the country through its Five-Point Consensus.
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A negative outlook for many
Critics and members of the opposition have swiftly voiced out their rejections against the rise of Aung Hlaing as Myanmar’s leader in the next five years, with experts claiming that his electoral win was a move to earn international nod on his military administration, especially from the country’s closest allies and ASEAN members.
The Steering Council for the Emergence of a Federal Democratic Union released a statement saying that its “vision and strategic objectives are to completely dismantle all forms of dictatorship, including the military dictatorship, and to collectively initiate a new political landscape.”
Others fear that Aung Hlaing could worsen the current civil war that has engulfed the Southeast Asian nation and that members of the opposition, particularly the supporters of jailed Aung San Suu Kyi, could be isolated further.
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Angelica N. Hall 
Shameeka Voyiya 
Carmela Calling