PRIME MINISTER General Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday told politicians they should not worry about losing party members following his Article 44 order to extend the deadline for some political party activities.

He said if parties maintained their ideologies, their members would still support them.

In his capacity as junta chief, Prayut last Friday exercised his absolute power to issue an order extending some deadlines specified in the Political Party Act. The law, which took effect in early October, was not implemented because the junta had not lifted its ban on political activities.

The latest order had been seen by politicians as an attempt to delay the election and reset existing party membership lists as it opened the way for members to defect from their current parties in favour of new parties that will be established next year.

But Prayut said politicians should look at the details of the order, not just its weaknesses and strengths.

“You [politicians] should take a break. Don’t worry or put pressure [on me]. I need to maintain peace and order in the country. The public, too, should understand me,” he said after a mobile Cabinet meeting in Sukhothai province. Prayut insisted the order had been issued to be fair to both old and new parties to update their party memberships.

“When you manage to get at least 500 members to pay party membership fees within 180 days after April 1 next year [as stipulated in the order], you can seek more members, up to 1 million,” he said.

Politicians have said the order allows them too short period of time to follow its stipulations and also expressed concern that they could lose many of their members.

The order gives current party members only one month to decide whether they will stay with their current party or review their political allegiance. People wishing to maintain their party memberships must submit letters to confirm that choice to party leaders and pay membership fees between April 1 and April 30 next year, or they will lose their status.

Despite the rescheduling of the deadline, Prayut said it would not affect the road map to the next election, which he had earlier set for next November.

Some of the harshest criticism has come from Democrat Party leader and former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, who has called on junta leaders to be more courageous and admit to the public that they wanted to delay the election.

“I won’t quarrel with him [Abhisit]. The public should listen [to both sides]. Those who want to enter politics should talk about the national strategy too. I have no disputes with anyone. I just want to make a strategy for the people,” Prayut said.

Obstacles to election

However, possible obstacles to holding an election next November have been raised by Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC) adviser Jade Donavanik.

First, Jade said he saw problems connected with the primary voting system for selecting party candidates, which is stipulated in the recently passed Political Party Act.

The 2017 charter stipulates that the next election must be held within 150 days after the four essential organic laws are promulgated.

The four laws concern political parties, the Election Commission, the election of MPs and the origins of the Senate. The last two are being considered by the National Legislative Assembly.

Jade said primary voting might not be possible because the parties could not comply with the stipulations in time. To bypass the primary system, however, would mean another use of the absolute power available to Prayut under Article 44, he added.

Another issue is whether the MPs election bill will have its promulgation period extended from three to six months resulting from the extended deadlines for parties.

The National Council for Peace and Order would have to meet with the Election Commission, the National Legislative Assembly President, the CDC, and political parties and other groups for consultations first, Jade added.

Panthongtae’s lawyers had asked the DSI to include a total of another 21 defence witnesses but only eight were approved because the agency said the rest were not relevant.

The eight additional witnesses include former investigators in the case as well as a private secretary, accountant and other people familiar with the funds transfer involved in the case.

Panthongtae is accused of violating the money-laundering law after allegedly receiving Bt10 million from the Krisada Mahanakorn real estate firm linked to a multi-billion-baht fraudulent loan provided by state-owned Krungthai Bank

Junta chief General Prayut Chan-o-cha last Friday issued an Article 44 order aimed at extending some deadlines in the Political Party Act, which came into effect in early October.

Political parties raised concerns over the new deadline giving them a short period of time to follow stipulations in the order. They also expressed fears that they could lose many of their current members, and saw the order as an attempt by the junta to “reset” party memberships.

Chatchai explained the time line of the road map for the next election. He said that the charter stipulates that the next election would be held within 150 days after four essential organic laws – those concerning political party laws, the Election Commission law, election of MPs and origin of the Senate – were promulgated.

The former two laws have already came into effect while the latter two are under review in ad-hoc committees and expected to pass their third readings in late January next year and come into effect in June at the latest, he said.

“One hundred and fifty days after June would fall in November. So, as of now, I don’t see any sign or circumstance that would lead to a delay,” he said

Chatchai also argued that the Article 44 order was not a “reset” but a process to update and confirm party membership.

Jade said he saw such the possibility, considering the issues of primary voting within political parties and the upcoming MPs bill -– which, along with the Senate bill, is one of the last two organic laws required for an election to be held.

Jade said it might be that primary voting does not occur, because the parties could not comply with it in time. To do this would mean another use of the absolute power available to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha under Article 44.

The other issue was whether the MPs election bill would have its promulgation period extended from three to six months.

The National Council for Peace and Order would have to meet with the Election Commission, the National Legislative Assembly President, the CDC, as well as political parties and groups for consultation first.

Jade said he supported the idea that concerned parties meet to discuss to work those issues out first, following what addressed under the newly invoked Article 44. He said such the meeting should have happened long time ago as it is reconciliatory and participatory.

He said if they maintained their ideologies, their members would still support them.

Politicians recently cried foul over the order, saying it only allowed them a short period of time to follow its stipulations. They also expressed concern that they could lose many of their members.

The order gives party members only one month to decide whether they will stay with their current party or review their political allegiance. Otherwise, they will lose their status with that party.

Prayut insisted the order was issued to be fair to both old and new parties.

Despite the rescheduling of the deadline, Prayut said it would not affect the road map to the next election.

He said earlier that the election would be held in November next year.

Former deputy PM Somsak Thepsutin led his Matshima group to meet the junta chief yesterday.

Somsak said after the meeting that the proposed projects would focus on managing floods which have hindered development efforts in the North.

The proposed projects include construction of the controversial Kaeng Suea Ten Dam, which faces strong resistance from environmentalists and locals living in the vicinity of Mae Yom River.

Earlier this month, villagers in Phrae province issued a statement slamming Somsak’s intention to revive the long-abandoned plan with the junta government. They asked for the “Sa Eiab Model” to manage irrigation to cope with drought in summer.

The Cabinet is also set to consider construction of four reservoirs as part of the Sa Eiab Model today.

Pornpetch said after the NLA passed the bill that concerned bodies, including the Constitution Drafting Commission, would have 10 days to review the constitutionality of the law before deciding whether they wished to set up a join law-review panel to resolve their differences.

If not, the bill would be forwarded to the Prime Minister, General Prayut Chan-o-cha, to submit for royal endorsement.

Those wanting to contest constitutionality of the bill via the Constitutional Court would have five days after the bill reaches Prayut, Pornpetch explained.

Pornpetch said his personal view was that there should not be any problem with the Court’s deliberation and ruling on the bill.

Five judges whose terms have expired have been endorsed by the NLA to continue working until the new judges replace them. The other four are reportedly qualified under the charter, so they can proceed with their work as normal, Pornpetch said.

Pornpetch insisted on the integrity of the NLA in deliberating and voting on the NACC bill, citing its members voted independently, despite reports of the postponement of voting procedures in the second reading which was seen as possibly affecting their decisions.

THE DEMOCRAT PARTY will file a petition with the Constitution Court to determine if the latest National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) order to extend deadlines required for political parties to follow under the Political Party Act is unconstitutional under the charter approved in last year’s referendum.

Junta chief General Prayut Chan-o-cha last Friday issued an Article 44 order aimed at extending some deadlines in the Political Party Act, which came into effect in early October. The law was not then implemented because the junta has not lifted its ban on political activities.

Political parties raised concerns over the short period of time for them to follow stipulations in the order and fear that they could lose many of their current members. The order gives party members only one month to decide whether they will stay with their current parties or review their political allegiances.

Those wishing to maintain their party memberships must submit letters to confirm that choice to party leaders and pay membership fees between April 1 and April 30 next year, or they will lose their status.

Political party leaders have said it would be too difficult to have members submit letters in time. The order also states that existing parties will have 30 days, from May 1-30, 2018, instead of 90 days as stated in the current law, to update their lists of members with the registrar of political parties.

Nipit Intharasombat, the party’s deputy leader, said yesterday the NCPO’s Article 44 order contradicted the charter’s articles on people’s rights because the current party law stipulated that membership of political parties only expires if people do not pay their membership fee within four years.

However, the new NCPO order gives them only 30 days to confirm their status and pay fees or else they will lose their status.

In this context, he said, people’s rights were seriously affected by the order, so the Constitution Court would be asked to weigh in on the crucial issue.

Meanwhile, Abhisit Vejjajiva, the party’s leader, started a new round of criticism against the NCPO order, saying the military should be more straightforward with the general public if it wanted to delay the general election, and it should cite good reasons in attempting to do so.

He said the controversial order requiring the re-registration of members of political parties that existed before the 2014 coup would also put established major parties at a disadvantage compared to new parties.

Competition in the election will not be on an equal footing since older parties will have some handicaps – such as restrictions on conducting early activities to win votes, while new parties will have more time to do so.

According to the NCPO order, from March 1 anyone can set up a new party and solicit members but older parties have to wait until April to start their activities.

On re-registering members of old parties, Abhisit said, major parties such as the Democrat Party, which has about 3 million members, would face a big challenge in meeting the deadline, especially if members are required to re-register in writing and pay fees within 30 days.

It was not sensible to argue that there were concerns about public unrest if all political parties were allowed to carry out their activities at an early date, he added.

He also said the NCPO’s exercise of its sweeping powers had become increasingly unclear during this transition period to return to a democratic path, which has been expected to lead to a general election in or around November next year.

In addition, Abhisit said, the NCPO has suddenly tied the working of political parties to the election law, resulting in less time for parties to prepare themselves for the nationwide poll.

Abhisit also cautioned that the NCPO should be more careful in exercising its sweeping powers. He said previous political incidents had shown that those who did not exercise restraint would soon lose their legitimacy.

Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam yesterday advised political parties to begin contacting their members via phone or online channels from today to avoid missing the deadline.

Wissanu said from today until the end of March, parties could ask registered members whether they wished to stay on as members. If they did, he said, they would be able to submit a confirmation letter and pay membership dues from April 1 next year.

Any member who failed to submit the letter by the deadline would still be able to register with any party later on, Wissanu said.

CONSTITUTION DRAFTERS have warned against allowing unqualified anti-graft commissioners to continue working as members of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), possibly including the president, saying it could create constitutional and work issues in the future.

A political observer, meanwhile, said he had already seen the development coming, considering the current corruption scandal involving key members of the ruling junta.

The NACC’s nine current commissioners were allowed to keep their posts under the new organic bill governing the agency, which was passed by the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) yesterday. The bill even prolonged their terms to nine years.

Critics of the clause relating to qualifying criteria for the NACC said it was at odds with a fundamental principle set by the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC), which stated that only those qualified by the new Constitution could keep their positions. The legislators endorsed it nonetheless, with 157 against 26 votes, while 29 others abstained from making the decision.

As per the entire bill, the NLA voted 198 to 1 to pass it after two and a half days of deliberation.

Pattara Khumpitak, representing the CDC in the bill-vetting committee, told the NLA during an intense debate that allowing either unqualified or disqualified commissioners to stay in positions of power would threaten the constitutionality of the commission.

He also said NACC President Pol General Watcharapol Prasarnratchakit had been a political office holder before taking a post at the agency and, according to the new charter, should be disqualified. However, the bill deliberately stipulated that such a disqualification should be exempted, he said.

Having an organic law that exempted rules enforced by the Constitutional Court would make it illegitimate, Pattara said. More importantly, commissioners who failed the constitution’s qualifications but were protected by the organic law risked the NACC’s legitimacy.

“Will they be able to fulfil their job if suspects complained that they were not qualified to be graft busters or to decide whether a person is guilty of fraud,” the charter writer said. “Decision-making in the NACC board will meet with difficulties.”

Some critics said the NACC was in an existential crisis because of its close connections to the junta.

Chamnan Chanruang, an independent scholar based in Chiang Mai, said he had earlier predicted that the NACC was unlikely to be dismissed from office because everyone was aware that Watcharapol had previously worked closely with Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan.

Watcharapol was a deputy secretary-general under the Prime Minister’s Office attached to Prawit when he became deputy prime minister after the coup.

The scholar added that if the Constitution was respected, almost all of the current commissioners would lose their positions. Such dismissals would also cause trouble for the regime given that a number of political cases were currently before the agency, he added.

Those cases include the recent scandal over Prawit’s luxury watches and those involving key political players in the Pheu Thai and Democrat parties.

While holding an award-winning fighting cock named Thepprathanporn, Prayut seemed to be drumming up support for the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO).

“Don’t be scared of the NCPO,” Prayut said, while scratching the chicken’s neck. “The NCPO won’t be hard on you.”

The prime minister is well known for his monologues during his Friday TV programme, which normally spans from 30 minutes to almost an hour, but he also appears to enjoy one-way conversations with animals during his field trips.

While the behaviour might be seen as odd, some political observers have interpreted his body language as meant to indirectly communicate political ideas to the public.

During August’s trip to Nakhon Ratchasima, he told cows “don’t fight each other”, before telling a frog in his hand “to be born a female frog in the next life so I too will become a frog prince”.

During this trip to Phitsanulok, he has spent Bt25,000 on three fluffy Thai Bangkaew puppies for himself, his deputy General Chatchai Saikulya and Interior Minister Anupong Paochinda.

With the cold weather lending itself to an atmosphere of joviality, the junta premier’s year-end field trip in the North was in stark contrast to the scene in Bangkok, where politics have been heated since Prayut controversially invoked the absolute Article 44 order to amend the Political Party Act.

While political commentators continued to slam the order, Prayut instead chose to enjoy spending time with local Phitsanulok residents before heading to a mobile Cabinet meeting in Sukhothai today.

In the last months of the year, the prime minister has made numerous field visits to areas across the country to observe local development projects and administrations. And everywhere he goes, multi-million-baht projects have been approved and local people given land use permits.

In line with that trend, the premier yesterday also witnessed the granting of 21 permits for land plots in 14 provinces.

“Admittedly, our country is troubled with people’s livelihoods, especially for those with low incomes,” he said to about 1,000 gathered local people

“We are also troubled by the market system. As we have free markets, people have to develop themselves to gain more market share. We have to cooperate with each other under the King [Rama IX]’s Sufficiency Economy Philosophy,” he said.

As occurred during last month’s trip to the South, residents filed petitions with the premier, but whereas he scolded a fisherman last month in Yala, this time he appeared to keep his cool.

Residents lined up to tell him about plunging rice prices, drought problems and, in particular, 23 households that had been deprived of electricity for two decades, with Prayut responding by ordering relevant ministers to address the issues.

He also referred to local SMEs that process som sa, the famous Thai herb known as bitter orange that has medicinal effects to alleviate coughing.

“Som sa is local wisdom with pride,” Prayut said, not missing a chance to display his particular brand of humour. “Please call me Prayut Chan-Som-Sa so I will blend with the atmosphere.”