“The investigation is still ongoing but the thing is, will there be weapons elsewhere?” Prayut said at his weekly press briefing. “The first finding is that the [recently found] weapons belong to the same batch as found earlier. But to whom they are related will be investigated later.”

Last week, police revealed the discovery of weapons that were presumed to belong to the red-shirt figure due to the serial numbers found on them. Wutthipong fled to Laos in 2014 after the coup but his current whereabouts are unknown. There were reports a few months ago that he had been abducted and killed, which Thai authorities have denied.

Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan claimed last week that the discovery could indicate that the security situation in the country was not yet stable enough for the junta to lift its ban on political activity.

General Chalermchai Sitthisat, who is also the Army chief, said that if political parties were adversely affected in any way by the continuation of the ban, remedial measures would be taken.

When considering removing the restriction, the NCPO looked at the overall picture, taking into account all the elements and not solely the discovery of the weapons, he stressed.

It considered the country’s laws as well as other situations and movements too, the general added.

Overall, it was not considered appropriate to allow a loosening of political movement, the NCPO secretary-general concluded, reasoning that taking such a step at this stage could bring about other problems.

However, the NCPO meets every Tuesday to assess the situation, Chalermchai said.

Asked if he would like to send any message to politicians who were looking forward to the lifting of the political ban, he replied that he understood how they felt.

Politics is about dealing with different opinions for the better, but if differences turned into conflict, the security sector needed to draw a line to contain the conflict in order to avoid damage to the country, he explained.

“So, unless we have confidence [in the overall situation], we won’t let go [of the ban],” the secretary-general said. “But we have the same goal, which is the [national] election.”

It was unclear on Monday whether he would be brought to a military or civilian court.

Wattana surrendered to the Army on Friday evening as police considered applying for an arrest warrant for him in relation to the weapons.

He was detained at the 11th Army Circle base under the interim charter’s Article 44 order prohibiting the possession of military weapons, Srivara said.

Initial questioning allegedly discovered Wattana’s links to “hardcore red shirts” and his previous record of possessing unauthorised military weapon, Srivara said.

Wattan’s seven-day detention under Article 44 ends on Thursday, so he will be brought to court to extend his detention.

Police were also gathering evidence to apply for an arrest warrant for another person linked to the case, Srivara said.

In 2014, Wattana was arrested for possessing military-grade guns, ammunition and explosives following the apprehension of Somjet Khongwattana, who allegedly had distributed weapons to create chaos during protests.

At the time, Wattana confessed to receiving weapons from Somjet to redistribute, including to another suspect, Chaiwat Polpho, but he then reportedly dumped the weapons in Ayutthaya’s Lat Bua Luang district after the junta announced plans to punish people for weapons possession.

Meanwhile, national police chief Pol General Chakthip Chaijinda dismissed speculation that the discovery of the weapons in Chachoengsao was a false flag operation.

Chakthip said he would not comment on politics, but added that the speculation that the discovery had been a set up was untrue because Srivara, who oversees national security, “would not do it” and the weapons were real.

Don said before Monday’s Cabinet meeting that his ministry had no such information and that the British Embassy had not informed the Thai government of any such action.

“I don’t want to speculate on or anticipate anything,” he said. “Right now, it’s just hearsay. We heard this two days ago and checked and found it was groundless.”

Don noted that some countries sell passports to wealthy investors under certain conditions. “But the UK has no such policy,” he said.

The Foreign Ministry in late October revoked all four Thai passports Yingluck owned after she was sentenced in absentia to five years in jail for failing to prevent irregularities in her government’s controversial rice-pledging scheme.

She fled the country in late August before the court read the verdict.

THE MILITARY government’s poor performance, mishandling of social movements and provocative comments made by senior officials have caused a major decline in its popularity, analysts have said, suggesting that the generals were acting in a political manner.

The main weaknesses of the government were its lack of understanding on many issues, the failure to holistically analyse situations, its own agenda pushing policy without considering better options, and the lack of public participation at many levels of policy planning, said Pracha Koonnathamdee, a lecturer at the Faculty of Economics at Thammasat University.

“The recent conflict over the Thepa coal-fired power plant signifies many mistakes committed by the government in governing the country, as they already have one answer in mind to build the coal-fired power plant to meet increasing electricity demand,” he said, giving one example.

By making that poor choice, the government had triggered a dispute with local people, who wanted to preserve natural resources and the environment, although there were plenty of wiser choices, such as investing more in renewable energy, Pracha said.

The government had also performed poorly in other policy dimensions and projects that benefited the majority in society, but cause difficulties for a minority, as the government did not have proper measures to assist people affected by projects, he said.

“Technically, we can collect extra taxes from people who benefit from a project to compensate those who are disadvantaged, but the government chose to let the minority sacrifice for the greater good, which is unfair to them,” he said.

From the perspective of local social movements, Direk Hemnakhon, leader of the Thepa coal-fired power plant opposition group, said the government should deal with people with more respect and listen to their problems.

Southerners are among the major supporters of the military government, but the handling of the protest last week backfired on the government in the eyes of the public.

“Even though we disagree with the government position on the plan to construct the new coal-fired power plant and we did not elect them to rule the country in the first place, right now they are the legitimate government, so we respect their authority as well as the country’s law and order,” Direk said.

Thepa power plant protesters clashed with police last week when they tried to meet with Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha to lodge a petition against the project. Sixteen were arrested and charged, although they were later freed on bail.

Police said they were looking for more suspects who had “created difficulties” for the premier as he attended a Cabinet meeting in Songkhla.

“However, we urge them [the generals] to properly perform their duty as the country’s rulers, listening to their citizens and working with them to move the country forward, not seeing them as enemies just because we have different views on government policies,” Direk said.

The government could easily solve its problems regarding its low approval rating and conflicts with various social movements in the country by listening to people and hearing their concerns and their side of the story, he said.

While the junta government might have made several attempts to ensure its long-term grip on power, even after elections via specially designed parliamentary mechanisms, it was eroding its own legitimacy, critics said.

National security has been the junta’s number-one reason for staying in power, involving the enactment of several measures to limit public assembly and freeze political parties’ activities for the sake of “social order”.

Attasit Pankaew, a Thammasat University political science lecturer, said the junta government should have learned to “act politically” as they had stayed in power for more than three years already.

“While the authorities have made special measures and rules to ensure its control of power, dealing with the public is a state-of-the-art skill that should be treated politically rather than legally,” Attasit said.

While the government, looking through the military’s lens, might not regard its performance as a total failure, its actions had affected its popularity, Attasit said.

“But popularity may not be the biggest concern for the junta, after all,” the academic added. “It is still not certain whether any of them [the generals] will compete in the next election, directly or otherwise.”

Pheu Thai caretaker secretary-general Phumtham Wechayachai said it was unjustified for the regime to use the recent discovery of a large arms cache in Chachoengsao province last week as an excuse to maintain its ban on all political activities.

“I understand that the powers-that-be are trying to prolong their power. But it won’t be good for them or the country,” he said.

He added that the regime should be aware that people were suffering because of bread-and-butter issues and the root causes of the problem were the lack of confidence and certainty regarding the return of democracy, the acceptable system to the global community. “The more you [junta leaders] try to prolong your power, the less benefit to the country and the junta itself,” he said.

Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan last week warned the ban on political activities would not be lifted because of threats to national security, including the recent discovery of two caches of military weapons. The junta banned political gatherings of five or more people shortly after the 2014 coup, resulting in all activities related to politics, including party meetings, being prohibited.

As the ban remains in place, politicians have also expressed concerns that they have been unable to begin making arrangements prescribed by law for the election due to be held late next year. Under the law that came into effect in early October, political parties are required, for instance, to make adjustments such as updating registration records and reporting them to the Election Commission (EC) registrar within 90 days, or by January 5. Failure to comply with the stipulations could make parties ineligible to field candidates in the election.

Chart Thai Pattana Party director Nikorn Chamnong said political parties needed to convene meetings in order to update their records but if the ban remained in effect and they could not hold meetings, parties would have to ask for an extension of the deadline or face dissolution.

“I urge the junta to review this complicated problem. If there is turmoil, they can lift the ban to some extent to allow some party tasks to proceed,” Nikorn said.

Pol Colonel Charungwit Phumma, deputy secretary-general of the EC, said parties could submit letters asking for extensions to update their registration records.

Panthongtae or “Oak” posted on his Facebook page that it used to be a tradition for him to prostrate before his father and mother on his birthday every year.

But over the past decade, he had no chance to prostrate before his father, he wrote, adding he would do so when he travelled abroad to see Thaksin.

“In the past ten years until today, my family members and I have always insisted that we just need to get our warm family back. And no one in my family wants to be involved in politics at all,

“If it becomes true, it will be the most precious gift for me and my family,” he wrote.

The status on his Facebook displayed a photo of his mother, Khunying Potjaman Na Pombejra, place her hand on Oak’s head to bless him.

Oak’s father Thaksin has been living in self-exile since 2008 in Dubai after he fled the country before a verdict in the case against him of abuse of power over the purchase of state-owned land by his then-wife Potjaman. Thaksin was sentenced in absentia to two years in jail.

Oak’s aunt, former PM Yingluck, also escaped from the country in late August before hearing a verdict over her government’s controversial rice-pledging scheme. The court later sentenced her to five years in prison.

Panthongtae himself is facing a charge in a money-laundering case over a multi-billion-baht loan fraud linked to the state-owned Krungthai Bank.

POLITICIANS have urged the junta not to use the recent discoveries of arms cache in Chachoengsao province as an excuse to delay the election, as this would only demonstrate the regime’s failure to keep peace and order in the country.

The politicians were responding to Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan’s latest warning about not lifting the ban on political activities because of certain occurrences threatening national security, including the recent discovery of two caches of active military weapons.

Wirat Kalayasiri, the chief of the Democrat Party’s legal team, said the government should thoroughly investigate whether there was a genuine movement posing a risk to national security, as the junta has claimed.

He said the junta has ruled the country for more than three years and has held power through laws, weapons and troops, so it should not use this reason to delay the election. Investigating the source of the weapons was more important than using it as excuse to delay the election, he added.

Creating doubts

“When Prime Minister Prayut [Chan-o-cha] announced election will be held in November next year, shares in the stock market rose. But if the government declares a delay in the election, I’m concerned that it will make the current economic situation worse,” Wirat added.

Former Democrat MP for Ubon Ratchathani, Supachai Srila, said the excuse of using the anti-junta movement or the discovery of weapons as reasons to not relax the ban on political activities or to delay the election could point to a failure of the powers-that-be in ruling the country.

“There are two sides to the coin,” Supachai said. “The excuses you [the junta] make could be interpreted as your failure to solve the same old problems – or it is just an excuse to prolong your period in power?”

Supachai said Prawit should be careful not to create doubts in society about the junta’s intentions, adding that the deputy prime minister “should work rather than speak” regarding the discovery of the weapons in Chachoengsao.

Prawit had said the weapons were purportedly stored in preparation for an attack in the capital.

On Wednesday, deputy national police chief Pol General Srivara Ransibhramanakul held a press conference to announce the discovery of the first cache, which included 30 RGD-5 grenades, 2 M79 grenades, 7 pipe bombs, three bars of C4 explosive, two AK-47 assault rifles, some ammunition and bomb fuses

On Friday, police found 50 more M79 grenades and one RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) in a paddy field opposite the swamp where the first cache was found in Chachoengsao’s Bang Nam Priao district, an official said. The second cache was found after the authorities widened their search of rice fields in the area.

Srivara linked the weapon cache to an extremist political group led by prominent red shirt Wuttipong “Ko Tee” Kottham-makhun.

Tracing the explosives

He said serial numbers on the RGD 5 explosives found are believed to be similar to those on weapons allegedly found at the site of a 2014 red-shirt rally in Muang Nonthaburi and in search on March 18 of Wuttipong’s business offices in Pathum Thani.

Srivara said on Friday that police had learned who owned the first cache of arms and were seeking arrest warrants. He said he expected those to be approved next week.

Police are checking the serial numbers of the grenades found in the second cache to try to establish their links to the owners, Srivara said.

Meanwhile, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) spokesman, Maj-General Piyapong Klinpan, said the discovery of the weapons had prevented people with ill intentions from harming others.

He said the NCPO was still following the law, and the road map to the election, but the situation at hand must also be considered before any relaxation of the political ban.

The junta banned political gatherings of five or more people shortly after its 2014 coup, resulting in all politics-related activities, including party meetings, being prohibited.

He said three things had to be determined before the ban could be lifted: the law, the situation regarding peace and “other” circumstances. The spokesman declined to specify what “other” meant.

Piyapong insisted that the junta was still following the road map despite the NCPO’s refusal to revoke the political ban even after the promulgation of the organic law on political parties.

He said the NCPO understood that politicians had to make calls for a relaxation of the ban, as that was their role. However, the NCPO was asking for cooperation.

“I want to assure you that everything is in line with the law and the road map. But the current situation also needs to be taken into consideration,” the NCPO spokesman said. “We have to look at the situation and then see what the priority is.”

Deputy national police chief Pol General Srivara Ransibhramanakul said the second cache of grenades was found on Friday at a paddy field opposite the swamp where the first cache was found in Chachoengsao’s Bang Nam Priao district.

Srivara held a press conference on Wednesday to announce the finding of the first cache that included 30 RGD-5 grenades, 2 M79 grenades, 7 pipe bombs, 3 bars of C4 explosive, two AK-47 assault rifles as well as some ammunition and bomb fuses.

The second cache was found after the authorities widened their search of rice fields in the area.

On Friday, Srivara said police had learned who owned the first cache of arms and police were seeking arrest warrants. He said he expected the warrants to be approved next week.

Police are checking the serial numbers of the grenades found in the second cache to try to establish links to their owners, Srivara said.

On Wednesday, Srivara linked the weapon cache to an extremist political group led by prominent red shirt Wuttipong “Ko Tee” Kottham-makhun.

He said serial numbers on the RGD 5 explosives found are believed to be in line with those on weapons allegedly found at the site of a 2014 red-shirt rally in Muang Nonthaburi and in a March 18 search of Wuttipong’s business offices in Pathum Thani.