Myanmar's election has been convincingly won by the opposition party, but hopes of a smooth and peaceful transition remain uncertain. Amid the public euphoria, business leaders in the country are cautiously optimistic about the future, though most have reservations about the new government's policies and its capacity to deliver.
Many Myanmar businessmen now openly show their support and commitment to The Lady, as democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi is universally known. As she and her National League for Democracy (NLD) prepare to assemble a new government, businesses are hoping it will lead them into a bright new era.
"Now we have to move on, leaving hatred and fear behind us," said Zaw Naing, the CEO of Mandalay Technologies and founder of the Myanmar Business Executives Association. "Everyone will be motivated. It's a great moment in Myanmar history.
"Now we can develop the country's human resources and establish a creative class, with a leader we love."
Currently the greatest concern is the long handover period and the fear that there will be a long hiatus in which little will be done.
Although the NLD won more than 80% of the seats contested in the Nov 8 vote, it won't officially take over the government until the end of March, and the new president will be elected in a joint sitting of parliament in early February.
The first major worry is the transition. "Everyone wants the transfer to be smooth and peaceful," said the businessman and commentator Kyaw Kyaw Hlaing, chairman of the Smart group of companies. "Instability, uncertainty or violence are in no one's interests."
"If the current and future leaders cooperate in the interests of the people, the new administration may be able to set a course to real development: improving the decrepit infrastructure, updating outdated laws and practices, infusing new skills to the workforce, introducing good governance, and so on," added Bernard Pe Win, the CEO of Wah Seong Boustead Company.
But doubts have already emerged because of the postponement of transition talks between Aung San Suu Kyi and the top three members of the current government -- President Thein Sein, the commander-in-chief Senior General Min Aung Hliang, and the speaker of the lower house, Shwe Mann.
Nevertheless public expectations are high, and people are ecstatic over the NLD victory.
"This is not just a new era, we're in a new galaxy," said Nway Nway Aye, a retired doctor.
"Everything is going to be better now," said Win Lwin, a taxi driver. "We trust her [Aung San Suu Kyi] and know she will make sure the situation of the poor improves -- unlike the Thein Sein government, which ignored our plight."
These expectations are already putting enormous pressure on the party. "The people gave us their votes, now we have to give them something in return," Tin Oo, a senior NLD leader, told Asia Focus.
Even the economic adviser to the current government, Zaw Oo, admitted that the problem of the last five years was the government's failure to provide a "democracy dividend" to farmers and the poor. "It takes time for policy changes to have an impact," he said. "There's always a policy lag."
In fact the situation for the majority of Myanmar's people has worsened in the last five years. "Since 2010, I earn less, food costs more and I've had to move three times because my rent was increased," said taxi driver Win Lwin who lives in northern Yangon. In the countryside, the farmers were untouched by the reforms.
Many businessmen remain cautious about the changes the NLD government will bring, and whether it will benefit business.
"When it takes over the government, the NLD faces some major challenges," said George McLeod, a Myanmar expert with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Bangkok. "It lacks administrative experience; its economic policies are imprecise and there are questions whether the bureaucracy is 'on side' to put its policies into action."
The NLD of course remains upbeat. "It's important to establish early credibility -- that economic policy-making is now in the realms of rationality and reason rather than the whims and caprices of the former regime," said Sean Turnell, an economic adviser to the NLD and professor at Macquarie University in Australia.
"The key to this is expanded economic freedoms and security to encourage enterprise, fiscal prudence and monetary stability to create the environment for growth, secure property rights and the rule of law to allow predictability for long-term decisions," he told Asia Focus.
Much attention will be devoted to reforming the financial sector, something the local business community craves: they desperately want lower inflation, a stronger currency, and a central bank that is independent of government and more transparent.
"The NLD will implement changes that are good for the sector -- the party is committed to genuine central bank independence, to sound monetary and fiscal policies, and property rights," said Prof Turnell. "This can only be good for the markets, it will reassure investors and boost business confidence."
Businessmen are very clear on what they see as the main priorities of the new government. Above all else clean government is what they want and expect. "There must be transparency and accountability -- not just lip service as in the past, there must be a level playing field, and the inefficient state-owned enterprises need to be privatised and made public companies," said Kyaw Kyaw Hlaing.
Of course the government must have a detailed development plan -- which clearly states the government's priorities. In fact, the sooner Aung San Suu Kyi or the NLD economic team make some official statement the better, he said. "We need some indication that the new government is not only committed to continuing economic reform and liberalism, but will strengthen it."
The longer they wait the more uncertainty there will be. In the meantime, the problem is that no one knows who to go to. Incumbent ministers are still meeting potential investors, discussing possible business ventures -- and some even asking for their cut -- but with no certainty that the new contracts will be honoured. Senior government officials are more hesitant in their discussions.
It is clear that the civil servants will be critical to the transition period and the operations of the new government, but the public service is in for a major shakeup. With more than 30 ministries, a priority for the new government will be to reform the bureaucracy -- including merging ministries, said Ye Min Oo, an NLD campaign activist close to the leaders, and a businessman himself.
"The plan is to streamline government, making it lean and efficient," he said, which in turn will be welcomed by local and foreign businesses alike.
"There are too many ministries, which has led to something of a bureaucratic meltdown," said Hanthar Myint, one of the NLD's political strategists and a member of its Central Executive Committee. While the new government is planning to merge ministries and reassign responsibilities, there are no firm plans or blueprints at present, he said.
The fact that the top echelons of the civil service are packed with former military men and others who owe their career to the former junta is also a major concern. The success of Aung San Suu Kyi in reaching an accommodation with the military on many fronts will thus be critical.
One issue of great concern to all businessmen -- local and foreign --is the country's acute lack of capacity. The president's economic adviser believed that this was the biggest problem facing Thein Sein's reform programme.
"Policy changes and initiatives got stuck in the bureaucracy, because of the lack of capacity -- both the civil servants and the institutions -- and coordination failures, preventing successful results from being achieved," said Zaw Oo. That's one of the reasons permanent secretaries were introduced, he added.
For local businessmen, an important answer is investing immediately and creatively in education, training and developing the country's human resources. "We need to expand the pool of academics, doctors, professionals, architects, technologists -- with both local and international knowledge," said Zaw Naing, who is also running MBA courses and classes in business leadership in his spare time.
It is essential to establish an enabling environment, encourage and motivate them, by giving them the space to help the country with their knowledge and experience, he said.
But Myanmar critically needs vocational training centres to produce engineers and craftsmen -- electricians, carpenters and plumbers -- and hotel management schools, according to Zaw Naing. "While we cannot compare with Singapore and its service-oriented training, we can provide technically trained people to support the growth of the manufacturing sector," he said.
More software development, an industry with he is intimately familiar, is both essential and feasible in Myanmar, he added.
Corruption is something the new NLD government will also certainly try to tackle. "Corruption is endemic in government and it must end," said party patron Tin Oo. While the army's economic interests are unlikely to be tackled in the near future, many businessmen are concerned about the fate of the many cronies of the military under the new NLD government.
The cronies -- including former generals in the previous governments -- have their tentacles everywhere, and many smaller businesses are dependent on them for their own survival.
"The cronies command extensive -- and often hidden -- business interests that pose major risks to foreign investors," said George McLeod of PwC. "These interests are often concealed behind nominee shareholders or complex corporate structures.
"Investors face the added question now of whether the new authorities will launch sweeping investigations into crony corruption, land speculation, or other wrongdoings committed under the old regime. This could bring embarrassing issues to light and raise the possibility of prosecution in both Myanmar and abroad."
At present the NLD attitude seems to be ambivalent and more Machiavellian, with senior NLD leaders suggesting that there will be no confrontational approach to the cronies.
"What is important is that they will no longer enjoy special privileges, will have to bid for new projects along with everyone else, which will be assigned through a clear, accountable and transparent process," said Ye Min Oo. "Above all the cronies -- and other big businesses -- will have to start paying appropriate taxes."
This may be easier said than done, as many in the opposition are now baying for blood.
"Properties nationalised under the old regime need to be re-examined, land illegally confiscated from the farmers needs to be addressed and major energy and infrastructure projects allocated in the past need to be reviewed," Htun Aung Gyaw, an exiled former student activist in 1988 and political columnist recently returned to the country, told Asia Focus.
For the moment the business community is prepared to be patient and bide its time. But businesspeople want to be given reassurances about the direction the new government will take in economic matters. They want to get back to business, but understand that the new government will be under enormous pressure.
"The leadership will be tested as it faces competing demands from the public, self-interest groups and the likelihood of dwindling popularity as hope meets reality," said Bernard Pe Win.