I see [the country going] backward more than forward. So, this is why we start to worry. And when it comes to the draft constitution, [this] is the worst constitution ever,” he said.

He compared the draft with something that could have been written in North Korea.

“I think the situation will not allow them to enjoy the power that much because of the way they run the country. Any regime that is careless about their own people will not last long,” he said.

The military government headed by General Prayuth Chan-ocha came to power in May 2014 in a coup in which Thaksin’s sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, was removed from office.

“The military keep urging publicly that they want to do reconciliation … They want to move the country forward, but this is one-and-a-half years [later], and there is no sign of reconciliation,” Thaksin told Al Jazeera.

“Vice versa …They are really siding with one side and then pressuring the other side.”