RIYADH, 11 February 2005 — Yesterday’s balloting was completed without major incident as 150,000 voters visited 140 polling stations. Foreign observers noted the election was orderly and peaceful.
One minor incident was reported by the Wifaq website in the Al-Naseem district when a security guard seized the ballot of one man. Other than that, no significant incident has been reported.
At the Voting Center No. 62, Muhammad Al-Towaim, an associate professor at King Saud University, talked to Arab News about the security issue after casting his vote. In his estimation, proper security preparation was key to the peaceful balloting and large turnout.
He said the strong security presence discouraged parties who might otherwise have sought to sabotage or disrupt the election. “We don’t have different political parties and the groups that exist in many countries,” he said. “As you know, the existence of those groups and parties can be pinpointed as the cause of those kinds of disturbances and clashes during polling,” he said.
“It’s as quiet and peaceful election as I have ever seen,” said Mussa Abdul Rahman Al-Mussa, who handles foreign relations for Sami Real Estate Investments Co. “I’m glad people took the time to read and thoroughly study the platforms of their candidates and learned how to make their selections before coming here. That enabled them to vote quickly and help the election run smoothly.”
Ziad, who asked that his complete name not be used, agreed with Al-Mussa. “I cast my vote today very simply, and as you can see there are no irregularities in the voting process,” said Ziad. “This was our first experience, and it was done in a very professional manner.”
He also commended both security and election preparations.
“In terms of security and well-organized procedures, this election will be remembered in history,” Ziad said. “Using a mobile was not even allowed to keep the voting completely quiet and peaceful.”
Most of the poll centers did not report any trouble.
“Our strong family heritage and faith had a direct role in the smooth polling process,” said businessman Fahd Ali. “We are very stable people in terms of security and economic issues. With all these aspects you can not compare us with other countries.”
Dr. Hisham Hilal, who works at the National Guard Hospital, said there were other factors that contributed to the smooth going.
“Here in Saudi Arabia, voters all abide by the law and our Islamic Constitution,” he said. “We can also say that because this is the first time voting is taking place here, people are not so aggressive.” he said “We have yet to see what will happen next.”
