Strong Campaign for Presidential Candidate? [Archives:1999/32/Local News]

News of a possible strong campaign for the unfamiliar presidential candidate, Mr. Najeeb Qahtan Al-Shaabi is spreading through out the country. “We have heard that an advertising agency will handle the campaign of Najeeb Al-Shaabi” an official stated last week.
With the increasing demand of the public to see competition, pressure on the government to allocate time for the candidate in the media (TV, radio, and official newspapers) is increasing.
If a campaign is launched, observers feel President Saleh’s campaign will overpower Najeeb Al-Shaabi’s. The public feels that President Saleh will win he election unless there is a referendum passed. Now that the opposition has decided to boycott the election because of the rejection of their nominee by the Parliament and because of some illegal operations during the nomination process. If the current conditions continue, the country will witness an uneventful election. The President is the only person with the authority to alter this by ordering the Parliament to re-vote for the candidates and bring a more competitive candidate into the election next month.
Even though the opposition’s elections boycott may not change the leadership’s decision to go on with the elections, it will in some way bring tensions in the country and cause a general feeling among the public that the elections will not run smoothly.
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