WITH LIMITED public debate and limited distribution of copies of the charter draft, voters will likely believe trusted “influencers” such as political leaders and activists when they vote in the August 7 referendum, analysts say.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and other powers that be shrugged off key politicians’ decision to take a stand against the draft charter recently. Prayut said yesterday that only a handful of politicians had rejected the draft, while eligible voters number several million.

“If voters let [politicians] influence them, then it’s up to them. You are the ones casting the ballot, you can choose,” the premier said, laughing off politicians’ negative views on the draft charter.

The PM also urged voters to look back at the political unrest before the 2014 coup. “They should decide for themselves whether they want to see that happen again after the next election,” he said.

Prayut‘s reaction came after Democrat Party leader and ex-premier Abhisit Vejjajiva publicly announced on Wednesday that he would not accept the draft charter. Many other well-known public figures have also said that they will vote “no” in the referendum.

Despite the authorities’ seeming indifference, political observers said yesterday that politicians’ comments would have a great impact on voters’ decision in the upcoming national vote.

“We have to admit that the dissemination of information concerning the charter is rather limited. It is possible that very few voters know of the charter content. Hence many of them who have very little information are likely to be swayed by political figures,” political scientist Attasit Pankaew from Thammasat University said.

Major public influencers, including politicians, activists, and academics have declared that they are opposed to the draft charter. The only individuals who stand firm in support of the draft are members of the post-coup “Five Rivers” organisations and the People’s Democratic Reform Foundation and its leader Suthep Thaugsuban. Suthep is a former secretary-general of the Democrat Party.

‘Consider the country’s future’

Suthep, a politician-turned-political activist, yesterday urged voters to base their decision on the country’s future, saying that politicians were “selfish and narrow-minded” and focused on their personal political goals.

“I will vote for the draft constitution, though my decision may go against that of many politicians. For me, national interest comes first,” he said. Democrat deputy leader Nipit Intarasombat said voters would very likely vote in line with their favourite politicians’ stance. “Politicians are way closer to the public. And I believe they trust us and will vote as we do,” he said.

Another Democrat politician Watchara Peththong said yesterday that the rest of the Democrats would follow their leader, in line with the 70-year-old party’s ideology.

However, Prawit Wongsuwan, a key figure of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), expressed confidence that not all Democrat supporters will share Abhisit’s opinion. “No one can have control over another in this [referendum] matter,” he said.

Meanwhile, Prayut yesterday reiterated that if the charter were to be rejected in the referendum, a new one would be written to ensure that an election could be held next year. He cited Abhisit’s statement on Wednesday that he would support the drafting of a new charter.

Prayut, who is head of the NCPO, also reminded people of what had led to the seizure of power in 2014. “Think about what you want to happen after the election. That’s the answer,” he said.

In a related development the spokesman of the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC), Udom Rathamarit, said yesterday that the drafters welcomed different opinions on the charter, but refuted Abhisit’s objections, saying the charter had enough mechanisms to combat graft.

As for the 250 junta-picked senators, the spokesman said the 500 elected-MPs would still outnumber them and they would carry more weight in any parliamentary decision anyway.

Meanwhile, most people surveyed recently by the National Institute of Development Administration refused to disclose how they would vote in the referendum.

More than 59 per cent of the respondents said they were undecided, compared to 33 per cent who said they would vote “yes” and 6.3 per cent who said they would vote “no”.

The survey was conducted on 1,500 eligible voters across the country on Monday and Tuesday.