Financial Times

Tin Aung Myint Oo built substantial personal wealth and connections that included Chinese interests and tycoons

Reports of the resignation of one of Myanmar’s two vice-presidents, influential conservative Tin Aung Myint Oo, have heightened speculation about an imminent cabinet reshuffle.

Myanmar media and the local language service of Voice of America reported on Sunday that Tin Aung Myint Oo, a former, a general and protégé of retired dictator Than Shwe, resigned as vice-president on May 3 for health reasons after receiving medical treatment in Singapore.

Government officials could not be contacted on Sunday night but Yangon-based diplomats said rumours of Tin Aung Myint Oo’s impending departure had intensified last week. The vice-president – known as an abrasive figure and critic of some of the president’s reforms – has dropped from public view in recent weeks.

His exit would be “very significant” said one diplomat, not only because of his opposition to political and some economic reforms, but also because of his support for the old-style “crony capitalist” model of business.

Tin Aung Myint Oo’s departure, however, would not necessarily signify a triumph for reformers. Under Myanmar’s political system, any replacement for the vice-president must be nominated by the parliamentary bloc that voted him in – in this case the 160 or so military representatives who are allocated 25 per cent of seats in the combined houses of parliament.

As a former chief of the Trade Council, which oversaw export and import licenses, Tin Aung Myint Oo built up substantial personal wealth and connections that included Chinese interests and tycoons such as Zaw Zaw, owner of the Max Myanmar group of companies.

He was also known to be heavily involved in negotiations with China for some big natural resources and infrastructure projects in Myanmar. These included the controversial $3.6bn Myitsone Dam in the country’s north, which was abruptly suspended last September by Thein Sein, the president, amid growing public outcry over the dam’s environmental impact.

News of his resignation comes as Mr Thein Sein prepares to overhaul his cabinet, according to people close to the government. About five or six so-called “hardliners” in the 37-member cabinet – including Kyaw Hsan, minister for information and culture; Zaw Min, one of two ministers for electric power; and Myint Hlaing, minister for agriculture – could be moved or see responsibilities downgraded, the sources said.

The shift highlights growing political confidence on the part of the president to tackle conservatives in his administration after western governments moved to ease sanctions following the April 1 by-elections. The polls delivered a sweeping victory for opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy, which won 43 of 45 seats contested, and was a stinging blow for the government-backed USDP party.

 In a move seen as a response to the entry of Ms Suu Kyi and 42 other NLD MPs to parliament last week, the military on April 23 replaced 59 of its parliamentary representatives with more senior officers. Some analysts say they could take a more conservative stance towards the opposition and the reform process than their predecessors.

Others, however, noted that armed forces commander-in-chief General Min Aung Hlaing – who selects the military’s parliamentary representatives – had been supportive of the president’s reforms. “Senior representatives are more likely, not less so, to think independently and vote on an individual basis,” said Richard Horsey, an independent Myanmar analyst.

“Tin Aung Myint Oo is regarded by many as a hardliner who was not really comfortable with the recent reforms,” said Mr Horsey “His replacement could lead to greater cohesion at the top of the administration but it remains to be seen who will be chosen as his successor.”
 

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