Seven members of the Yemeni parliament have resigned from President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s ruling party and have joined the opposition today, citing the violent crackdowns on protesters as the reason for their decisions.
According to one of the MPs, Abdulaziz Jubari, the MPs have also sent a 10 point letter to President Saleh issuing a myriad of demands against him, including immediate reforms and the transition to a democracy.
The seven MPs amount to a very small faction in the 301 man parliament, but includes some influential figures, including a top tribal leader from the Sanaa region. The protests have been growing across the nation for weeks.
The Saleh government insists that it is “already democratic” and that there are no real reforms to make. Saleh has also condemned the protesters for spreading “anarchy” across the nation and ruled out resigning, one of the key demands made on the long-ruling dictator.
As a Yemeni, I would wish to see a peacefull trasition of power in Yemen.The main obstical in achieving this goal is that there are still those who believe in Sale’s lies that Yemen is truly a democratic state.For over three decades , Saleh has managed to push Yemen decades back .Nepotism, corruption and reinstitution of tribal system,the later has sent the Yemeni society centuries backward, all of these factors have contributed in creating the havoc that we are witnessing to-day.Its for the sake of Yemen’s futue and of those interested in Yemen’s stability, that Saleh and his followers must go.