CNI News

13 October 2025

Everyone is watching with great interest to see why the People's Pioneer Party (PPP) was unsuccessful in its request for military candidates.

At the PPP's third press conference, held on October 8, 2025, at the Sedona Hotel in Yangon, Party Chairperson Dr. Thet Thet Khine stated that the party had requested 8 young military candidates to represent the party but the military did not send them.

She explained to the media, "I requested 8 military candidates to represent the party, and I specifically requested them by name, but they were not given. That is the clearest answer. This is the truth. I asked for 8 military personnel, and the individuals themselves also had the desire. However, the military did not give them to our party. Nevertheless, when asked if there are no military personnel in our party, there are. Those are individuals who retired from the military and became civilians or those who retired from the military, worked in government civilian departments, and have now taken a pension. Speaking of the military, the military is an organization that protects the non-negotiable sovereignty of a country. Our party will build a civil-military relationship that will always recognize the military."

The list of candidates who will contest for the People's Pioneer Party is seen.

U Myo Kyaw of the United Nationalities Alliance (UNA) told CNI that the PPP party might have requested candidates from the military to align with the military's wishes and to gain power. He suggested this might be viewed through a business lens rather than a democratic one, as the party is led by a businesswoman.

He stated, "They (PPP) are currently acting in accordance with the wishes of the military commission. In other words, their approach is not democratic. Even though they say they will contest the election, the reality is that they are pursuing power and are reliant on what the military commission provides. That's why I understand they requested candidates from the military. Under the previous government, they primarily attacked and criticized what they saw as unfair spending of funds by that government. They criticized democratic groups but do not mention the corruption and unjust wealth accumulation of the current military leaders. I see it as them looking for a way to partner with these dictators to see what they can gain. It might also be because they are business people. Why? Because it seems like they are pursuing a common interest with the military and its associates instead of focusing on the people."

The first phase of Myanmar's general election is scheduled to take place on December 28, 2025, in 102 townships.

The PPP is reported to have submitted a list of 672 candidates to contest in the election across the country.

The People's Pioneer Party

Political analyst Dr. Aung Myo told CNI that the PPP's claim of requesting military candidates might be an attempt to convince the public that their party is composed entirely of civilians.

He said, "The reason for her request is that some of the military personnel are interested in politics, mostly the educated groups. Quite a lot of the educated strata go to Dr. Thet Thet Khine. So, it is possible that some educated officers in the military went to Dr. Thet Thet Khine and suggested they wanted to run. It's not more than that. However, I understand she said this because she wants the public to believe that the party is composed entirely of civilians. We don't know clearly whether it is the attitude of the authorities or the attitude of the individuals. Therefore, because there is room for suspicion, it is better not to talk about this issue further."

The PPP was founded by Dr. Thet Thet Khine on October 23, 2019, and contested with over 200 candidates in the 2020 general election. However, the PPP did not win a single seat in the 2020 general election.

Subsequently, when the administration led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing enacted a law for political parties to re-register in 2023, the PPP reapplied as a Union-level political party and was granted registration on June 5, 2023.