THE National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA) yesterday over whelmingly voted to approve a report on drawing up the “national strategy” draft bill to create a body that would set strategic directions for future governments. Opponents were concerned that the body could pave the way the junta to retain its power after the election.

The report proposed by the NRSA’s committee on national administration reform was approved by 164 to six votes.The report proposed forming a new body called the “national strategic committee”, which would serve an eight-year term and have the power to set rules and plans that would be valid for 20 years, and binding for every government that takes the reins of power during the period. If they failed to do so, they could face penalties if their policies damaged to the country.The most controversial point in the draft is the national strategic

committee because of the power it could confer to the current junta.The committee would comprise 25 members, including the prime minister and the presidents of the upper and the lower houses, the report suggested. However, in the first four years, the first 25-member committee would include the current prime minister, the president of the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) and the chairman of the NRSA, who would set out the first strategic plan for Parliament to approve, the report suggested.

Most of the NRSA members yesterday agreed in principle that a national strategy plan was a necessity.In the past the policies of different governments have been at odds with one another. As a result, the country has no clear vision or direction of where it is headed and what goal it aims to achieve in the long run, according to most NSRA members yesterday.

Only one member, Kasit Piromya, disagreed completely with the idea of a national strategy and the bill.The former foreign minister and prominent figure of the yellow-shirt group said that it was impossible for a non-communist country to have such a long-term strategic plan. “Such a scheme could only be achieved by those countries where a single government ruled for a very long time, like

China,” he said.

Committee ‘too powerful'”The world is changing every day. The country is changing every day.

There is no way for a 20-year plan [to be successful],” he said.Kasit also pointed out that the national strategic committee would be very powerful and could dictate a lot of policy. He questioned whether “[you are] fooling yourself that this is not the National Strategic Reform and Reconciliation Committee [NSRRC] being revived”.Political observers are voicing concerns similar to Kasit’s that the committee would be very similar to the NSRRC proposed in Borwornsak Uwanno’s charter draft.

That draft was shot down by the now defunct National Reform Council (NRC) last year. The committee outlined in the previous charter draft was believed to have had the power to overrule the

government after the election. Another NRSA member, Kamnoon Sitdhisamarn, however, argued on his Facebook page that the new committee would be nothing like the NSRRC.

The national strategic committee did not have the controversial power to rule over the executive branch in a time of crisis like the NSRRC would have, he argued.Vittaya Kaewparadai, an NRSA member who was also an active figure of the People’s Democratic Reform Committee, suggested that the national strategic plan be included in and enforced by the constitution.Despite agreement on the need for the plan, NRSA members posed questions about how much public participation the bill could guarantee.

Because the scheme is a “national strategy”, it would involve and affect the public in general. Additionally, it would set out plans that would last as long as 20 years.

NSRA members yesterday said the people should have a hand in it or it would not be very democratic.Apart from that, they also expressed concern that setting up too many new agencies to take charge of strategic plans would be too expensive. They asked that the committee review whether some of the new bodies could be dissolved and perhaps existing agencies could instead help carry out the plan.

NRSA members can until Friday still submit additional comments to the committee on national administration reform, which is the panel responsible for putting forward the draft bill on the national strategy plan. Subsequently, the report will be forwarded to the Cabinet and to the NLA in accordance with the procedure to pass a bill.