BAGAN — State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has urged the public to be patient with her government during a meeting with residents in rural Magwe Region amid growing criticism and concern over its performance.
Aung San Suu Kyi said her government was trying hard to carry out its tasks and satisfy the public but it had only been in office for 10 months and needed more time to show results.
She added that the people should cooperate with her government’s reform efforts to ensure they were successful.
“We never told the people that we would do everything for them. But we repeated and repeated that everything we do will only be successful if the people join with us. We need to keep this in mind,” Aung San Suu Kyi told residents in Sanpyagyi village, Pakokku Township, on Wednesday.
“The people should say the things that they need to say and do the things that they need to do. But they should also be patient when they need to be patient,” she added.
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The state counsellor made the comments on the second day of a two-day visit to central Myanmar. On Tuesday, she toured temples at Bagan with members of the Bhutan royal family.
In recent months her government has faced growing criticism over its handling of issues ranging from the peace process and renewed conflict in Rakhine State to the economy.
However, some observers say it is still too soon to judge the government’s performance, particularly given that it lacks control over three key portfolios, which are instead managed by military commander-in-chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.