ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/Yingluck-urges-voters-to-come-out-in-force-for-the-30291327.html

The Nation

July 25, 2016 1:00 am
Former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has called on voters to decide the country’s future by casting ballots in the August 7 referendum on the charter draft.

With the referendum only two weeks away, Yingluck posted the comment on her Facebook page.

“The August 7, 2016 referendum is highly significant to our country’s future. This referendum is decided by a simple majority without taking into account the number of voters who turn out,” she said.

“Hence, a high voter turnout is necessary to 1) maintain democracy, 2) determine the future by deciding whether we approve of this charter draft being used in administrating the country, and 3) decide if the people benefit from this charter draft.”’

Suriyasai Katasila, director of Rangsit University’s Thailand Reform Institute and deputy rector of the College of Social Innovation, expressed concern that the result of the referendum may not steer the country on the desired path of reform.

“Regardless of what the result of the referendum is, the reform [being completed] before [holding] a general election is a challenge for the country,” Suriyasai said.

“Now on the home stretch before the referendum, we see the viewpoints and objectives of each political camp more clearly.”

He said the results of the referendum could not be interpreted in a specific way because it was more complicated than previous charter referendums.

He said the reasons for supporting the charter draft vary from a strong belief in anti-graft mechanisms in the draft to giving moral support to the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) as well as other reasons.

Reasons for opposing the draft range from opposing the coup and the NCPO, objecting to the undemocratic principles contained in the draft, and opposing the NCPO holding on to power.

“With such complications, it is difficult to use the results to support any political group’s interest,” Suriyasai added.

Democrat Party deputy leader Ongart Klampaiboon said people had the right to show their stance on the charter draft. However, he said there were many people who made aggressive, arrogant and distorted comments about the draft on social media.

“This should not take place in Thai society. Even though we have differing views, we should not use vulgar, distorting and arrogant statements to attack one another. We should respect other views and decisions,” Ongart said.

He suggested that people refrain from stoking rivalries and creating an unreasonable atmosphere, while respecting the referendum result as a victory for the country regardless of whether the draft passes.

He also called on the public to refrain from any unfair action to ensure the referendum is carried out in a fair manner and with legitimacy, while all political camps must respect different views on the matter and be ready to listen to different opinions.