Deputy Premier and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan was responding at the Defence Ministry to questions from reporters over speculation that Somchai would become a new critics of the ruling National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) after he was removed from office at the order of junta chief, PM General Prayut Chan-o-cha.

“Let him [Somchai] make his moves. But he must not do anything that goes against the law,” Prawit said.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Prayut issued an order in his capacity as the NCPO head, terminating Somchai’s term in office as a member of the Election Commission (EC).

Somchai on the following day signalled that he was now free to comment more broadly on politics – something he could not do while serving as an election commissioner.

Somchai told reporters while leaving his workplace on Wednesday: “Now that I’m not in the EC, I will be able to give more diversified and broader comments than before, when I could only talk about elections and political party activities.”

“It’s not a case of whether he can or cannot do. He has absolute power and the question is what he chooses to do,” said Abhisit.

The MP election bill was submitted to Prayut on Monday. He will have five days to consider whether or not to petition the court for an interpretation and ruling on the bill, as empowered by the law.

The bill is among the two that are controversial with regard to their constitutionality despite being passed by the National Legislative Assembly and even reviewed by the joint law review committee to settle differences that arose after the NLA’s approval.

The Constitutional Drafting Commission (CDC) still disagrees with some of the bill’s contents that were endorsed by the committee and the NLA, citing they would contradict the Constitution.

In the Senate selection bill, the CDC pointed out that the origin of the senator candidates, which includes those coming from professional associations, may go against the charter.

In the MP election bill, the CDC was concerned that the assistance provided to the disabled by officials at polling centres would go against the principle of direct and secret voting specified in the charter.

Some NLA members decided to petition the court to rule on the point raised in the Senate bill, but not those in the MP election bill, saying this would affect the election road map.

The PM, hence, would have the option of petitioning as stipulated in the charter.

Prayut, however, said on Tuesday he would not intervene in the issue, leaving it to the NLA to solve the problem.

Abhisit said the issue arose because concerned parties were unsure of what they had decided.

However, he said the issue should be clarified by the court so that problems would not arise later.

What people fear is that if the MP election bill is promulgated in this form, affected parties would petition the court to nullify the election.

Abhisit said Prayut is in a position to help solve this problem, while ensuring the election road map remains intact.

Abhisit projected that the election could still be held around February, and the Democrat Party was ready for it.

He declined to confirm if the Democrats would join other parties in proposing Prayut to be the PM after the election, saying he would consider whether their policies were in line with those of his party.

The Democrat leader said he would elaborate his directives as well as other party administrative work on April 1, when existing political parties are allowed to start administrative work.

The premier said the scheme was aimed at investing in development projects in local areas.

Prayut is on a one-day visit trip to the northeastern province of Nong Bua Lamphu, where he would attend a community forum on the Bt100-billion scheme that aims to create “sustainable Thainess” across the country.

Through funding for local economic development and agricultural reforms, the scheme also claims to “promote Thai-style democracy”, enhance public understanding of the government’s work and encourage social harmony.

Launched last month, the scheme has strongly promoted by the junta government, who would be in power for less than a year before the next government is elected.

The scheme is viewed by critics as little more than a populist campaign to boost the junta government’s popularity, which has been slumping from a series of corruption scandals, slack economic performance and suppression of public political opinion.

Somchai showed up at the EC office yesterday to pack up his belongings after the chief of National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), General Prayut Chan-o-cha, issued the termination order on Tuesday evening using the absolute power afforded to him by Article 44.

Somchai said he planned to finish packing up tomorrow, drawing the curtain on four years in the role.

He believes his straight comments in public may have upset the powers-that-be, and they were the reason he was removed from office.

Leaving his workplace yesterday, he told reporters: “Now that I’m not in the EC, I will be able to give more diversified and broader comments than before, when I could only talk about elections and political party activities.

“Will my comments lead the NCPO to come after me? I believe I know what I’m talking about. I’ve never lied or said anything rude or provocative,” he added.

Mixed reactions came after the dismissal. Some analysts viewed it as a threat to independent agencies that should be free from political influence. Others felt it was a personal matter between Somchai and the ruling junta. Political scientist Trakool Meechai said that such an exercise of absolute power could lead people to think the NCPO was interfering with independent agencies.

The move reflected the junta’s power and emphasised that it could be used arbitrarily, he said. Trakool added that this may create an uncomfortable atmosphere, especially as the election was fast approaching.

Former EC member Sodsri Satayathum, meanwhile, said it should not “creep out” independent agencies. They still had to function and carry out their duties based on the law, she added.

Somchai had been commenting on the election road map that could cause tension between the EC and the ruling regime, she said. So, the junta may have decided to end that by dealing directly with the problematic person, she said, adding that the matter was between the NCPO and Somchai, not the agency.

Somchai had been particularly critical of the junta’s election road map in recent times after the entire panel was dismissed under the new law. This led to the dismissal order on Tuesday, which stated that his comments had “caused confusion among the public”. There was also a claim of conflict of interest given that Somchai had applied for the position of EC secretary-general.

Somcahi said two of his remarks could have upset those in power.

First, he answered a question asked by Prayut if it was lawful for the NCPO to support a political party, and Somchai had said that for a person it would be okay, but for the NCPO it was not appropriate.

Second, he opined that a petition to the Constitutional Court for a review of the MP election bill would definitely affect the road map to the election. This contradicted those in power who said it would not do so.

Prior to that, Somchai appeared to have a good relationship with the regime – but the pro-democracy camp labelled him and his colleagues as the electoral commissioners who had not even once managed to hold an election. Somchai opposed the holding of the February 2, 2014 election, causing negative sentiment among pro-democracy activists.

The EC also served the junta in holding the charter referendum in 2016. Following the junta’s security policy, the agency put harsh restrictions on any campaigns that pro-democracy activists viewed as intrinsic to free and fair voting.

Despite the current circumstances, Somchai said yesterday he would not withdraw from the contest for the secretary-general position, although he was fully aware he had little chance of success. He said he would go back to working with the watchdog People Network for Election in Thailand.

Somchai also appeared to be more friendly with anti-junta activists after Tuesday’s dismissal. He greeted Sombat Boonngamanong, who went to the EC office to request registration of a new political party called “Krian” (“Troll”), and indicated that he could be an adviser to that party.

On Facebook, junta critic Attukkit Sawangsuk said he wanted to invite the sacked commissioner to join a recently suspended discussion critical of the regime. Somchai responded: “Will you dare to invite me? I want friends. LOL.”

Although a slang meaning of the word krian is “troll”, Sombat said he had checked a dictionary to ensure that the party’s name would not violate the political party law that bars names deemed to pose threats to the democratic regime under the monarchy.

The activist said his party would not back an outsider or non-elected MP as premier, which is allowed under the charter with a condition that the parliament fails to pick a prime minister through its normal processes.

Sombat said his party would work to become a party of the masses, in which people could participate to develop public policies.

He said its support base might overlap with that of the Future Forward party of car-parts billionaire Thanathorn Juang-roongruangkit, although he believed that would only be the part comprising the younger generation. His party, he said, was open for all to join and to help figure out sound policies.

So far, according to a survey on social media, more than 500 people had expressed interest in joining his party, he claimed.

Earlier yesterday, Sombat met former EC member Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, who was sacked under junta chief Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha’s special powers on Tuesday. He said Somchai had warned him about the party’s name, telling him to make sure that it would not violate the political party law.

Sombat also offered Somchai the chance to become a party member, but he declined to join.

They agreed the time was right and the technology was readily available for this to happen, in the same way that US President Donald Trump’s campaign team benefited from a large cache of personal details collected from some 50 million Facebook users.

The data was used for psychological profiling of American voters and a powerful database helped carry Trump to victory in the 2016 presidential election.

This has become an issue after Facebook expressed outrage over the “misuse” of its data by Cambridge Analytica, the British company at the centre of a major scandal rocking the social media giant.

The UK firm suspended its chief executive, Alexander Nix, after recordings emerged in which he boasted that his data company played an expansive role in Trump’s election campaign, doing all of its research and analytics as well as digital and television campaigns, Agence France-Presse reported yesterday.

In undercover filming captured by Britain’s Channel 4 News, the suspended CEO is also seen boasting about entrapping politicians and secretly operating in elections around the world through shadowy front companies.

According to http://www.statista.com, as of January 2018, Thailand has the eighth highest number of Facebook users in the world, with 51 million people using the social network.

Bhume Bhumiratana, a researcher and educator in cyber-security, said yesterday that it was highly likely that the next general election in Thailand would see the use of big data analytics in profiling voters.

He said that profiling of social media users was nothing new in Thailand, although it was usually done for marketing purposes.

People involved in consumer profiling may partner with some politicians or political parties in order to determine their targeted voters, in an attempt to win more votes in their election campaigning, he said.

“Technologically speaking, it’s possible to use information about people’s preferences in election campaigning,” he said.

He also warned Facebook users that their personal information was already being collected by various apps that seek their permission for access to their data.

“There is a high likelihood these apps will use our personal data in a wrong way. Many advertisements target us and we don’t know the real intention,” he said.

Arthit Suriyawongkul, coordinator of Thai Netizen Network, a leading non-profit campaign that advocates digital rights and liberties, said yesterday that there are many apps that collect personal data and personal details of social media users, particularly on Facebook.

The most popular among those apps is VonVon, which is well known among Thai social media users, he said, noting that the app uses the same application programming interface (API) as the one used by Cambridge Analytica.

Arthit said such profiling could be done easily here, as Thailand still has no law that protects personal data in general.

However, he saw nothing wrong with political parties campaigning about what their prospective voters want to hear, unless the database is misused or illegally obtained. “There should be no problem if the parties can keep their promises,” he added.

He said he was more concerned that this issue could be used by the Election Commission or the National Broadcast and Telecommunications Commission as a reason for tighter control of social media.

Poomjit Sirawongprasert, president of the Thai Hosting Club, said that voter profiling with the goal of winning an election could be done in Thailand as long as the people involved have the knowledge, money and time.

Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, in his capacity as head of the National Council for Peace and Order [NCPO], exercised his special powers specified by Article 44 embedded in the new charter to terminate Somchai as an Electoral Commission (EC) member, effective on Tuesday.

“I’m not shocked by the order. I have been aware for a long time that the powers-that-be might feel bad towards me. He [the junta chief] has the power to do so [remove him]. I have to admit it [the order],” Somchai told The Nation an hour after the order was announced in the Royal Gazette on Tuesday.

The order said that Somchai had carried out inappropriate behaviour by causing “public confusion” in his remarks with the media about the election process. Also, Somchai was in conflict of interest by applying to become EC secretary-general without resigning from his current post, it added.

Somchai recounted two of his remarks that could have upset those in power.

First, he answered a question asked by Prayut if it was lawful for the NCPO to support a political party, and Somchai said for a person it would be OK, but for the NCPO it was not appropriate.

Second, he opined that a petition to the Constitutional Court for a review of the MP election bill would definitely affect the road map to the election. This contradicted those in power who said it would not do so.

“I have no regrets. Working here [at the EC], we need to cling on to the right principles. The public will see whether the use of power by the powers-that-be is right or appropriate, or not,” he said.

Somchai said it would now be difficult for him to get the job of EC secretary-general.

This was because other four EC members, who will choose a candidate, may fear that they would dissatisfy the ruling powers if they voted for Somchai.

Somchai said he would not file a petition against the Article 44 order, but would find another job that suited his ability and experience.

The submission follows the general’s submission to the panel of a fourth letter of clarification about the watches he has been seen wearing, which are said to have a combined value of Bt30 million.

NACC secretary-general Worawit Sukboon said yesterday that the panel had received a 38-page letter, which explained the origins of the 25 watches that had been seen on Prawit’s wrist on various occasions but were not reported as assets to the NACC as required by law.

However, Worawit said the probe was not yet complete because the panel needed to talk to two more witnesses. Also, the companies that imported the watches had not yet submitted evidence to the panel.

Worawit said the panel would submit its initial findings to the NACC so that it could consider the case and suggest to the panel what else needed to be done in the investigation. This possibly could include inviting Prawit to meet the panel in person, he said.

Meanwhile, volunteer social worker Ticha Nanakorn plans to pressure the NACC to speed up its investigation.

Ticha announced on Facebook yesterday that she would submit a letter today to NACC president Pol General Watcharapol Prasarnrajkit, urging him to take legal action against Prawit.

Ticha initiated a petition at Change.org on January 31 to press Prawit to keep his promise to step down if citizens no longer wanted him in government. As of February 15, 80,018 people had backed the petition calling for the minister to resign from the Cabinet. Ticha has presented the results to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha.

Ticha posted that even though Prawit had submitted his fourth written explanation about the origin of the watches to the NACC last week, it remained unclear whether the agency would summon him for a meeting or take any other action.

“Society is curious about the NACC’s action on this case,” Ticha wrote.

She said activists would stage a symbolic demonstration at NACC headquarters today to indicate that delayed action was unjust and to reaffirm their opinion that Prawit must resign.

THE government may need to go it alone in choosing the election date if political parties failed to “cooperate” and take part in a meeting to be held in June, Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha said yesterday.

In June, political party representatives are expected to meet the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) and its appointed constitutional drafters and legislators to discuss holding the next election.

Also in the same month, all four organic laws essential for the election are to be announced in the Royal Gazette, paving the way for the country’s first general election in over four years after the May 2014 coup.

“We’ll have to find a conclusion as much as possible. Whichever party wishes to come is welcome,” Prayut said during his weekly press briefing at Government House.

“We have to hold the election eventually. Without cooperation, we will have to set the date on our own. How hard would that be?” he said.

Political parties would also be expected to explain how they would continue work initiated by his junta government, Prayut added. “They can’t have nothing in hand and get elected just like that,” he said.

While parties would not be expected to elaborate on their policies in front of the junta, Prayut said they should be able to “answer how problems can be solved”.

“They can reveal their policy platforms afterwards. I don’t expect to hear them,” he said.

“Political parties’ policies can’t make changes to the country because they benefit just certain groups of people. Hasn’t it been carried on in that way? The rice-pledging scheme, for instance. Who was it made for? Have they ever been responsible for the burden on the national budget?” he asked rhetorically.

The premier was apparently referring to the rice-pledging scheme carried out by fugitive former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s government. Last year, Yingluck was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment in a court case that stemmed from the project. Some of her Cabinet members and businesspeople involved in the project are facing lengthy jail terms and hefty fines.

Democrat Party key member Ongart Klampaiboon said the party might have to see an official invitation before deciding whether to join the discussion.

“The Democrat Party is more than willing to help contribute if the discussion will yield something for the country,” he said in reference to Prayut’s comments. “However, I’m not sure what this discussion will be about, because the topic keeps changing.”

The veteran politician also noted that scheduling the election date was normally the responsibility of the government and the Election Commission (EC). He said he was not sure what role political parties would play in that matter, as they had never previously had any involvement.

Pheu Thai Party politician Korkaew Pikulthong said yesterday that his party saw no need to join a discussion with the government regarding the election date.

“Determining the election date is the job of the EC and government,” said the former MP. “This government has failed to keep its promise [about the next election]. We’ll have to keep following up this issue,” he added.

Korkaew also said it was not the government’s business to discuss with political parties about their policy platforms. They had the freedom to formulate policies to satisfy voters and get elected, he added.

Prayut yesterday reiterated the so-called political road map was still valid despite the increasing possibility that the last two organic laws required for an election would be submitted to the Constitutional Court for review.

While the two laws have already been approved, a court decision on whether they violate the charter would mean that the legislative process could take longer and result in an even longer delay before the election.

Concerns

“It can happen by legal procedure. We have the court. Otherwise the court would have no work to do,” Prayut said.

He also insisted that the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) should take care of the task. “They haven’t sent them back to [the government]. Don’t throw it to us,” he added.

Meanwhile, chief constitution drafter Meechai Ruchupan yesterday said he would not formally recommend to the prime minister that he seek a Constitutional Court ruling on the contentious MP election bill, despite concerns that its constitutionality issue may hamper the next election.

Some observers, including lawmakers, pointed to certain provisions deemed to be in conflict with the Constitution and they warned that the issue could fail the political road map and lead to an indefinite delay in the election.

The election bill allows people with special needs to be assisted by polling-booth officials in casting their votes. For many, this goes against the Constitution, which requires ballots to be cast in secret.

Meechai, chairman of the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC), said yesterday it would not be a problem as long as such unusual voting did not happen in too many constituencies, and nobody raised the issue at the Constitutional Court.

However, Jade Donavanik, a law expert and advisor to the CDC, told The Nation that the legislation should be based on a broader interpretation, meaning it should not leave anything to chance.

He said the bill should be scrutinised by the Constitutional Court for the best clarity possible.

Members of the NLA, meanwhile, have insisted on not taking the bill to the court. In their view, it should not be a problem. Also, hey did not want a judicial review to put off the election further.