1. Do we need to have new political parties or new politicians for the people to consider in the next election and whether the old politicians or political parties can form a government that pushes forward reforms or the national strategy?

2. Is it his or the junta’s right to support any one of the parties?

(After asking the question, Prayut himself appeared to answer the question by saying that it was his right to support or not support any one, and if there were all the old faces he would not support them.

3. Do people see a better future from the government’s work during the past three years?

4. Is it appropriate to raise the idea of going back to the administrative style of previous governments in the current moment?

Prayut said the situation today is far different from the past, and people should not forget how and why he had entered taken office.

5. Have democratic governments or politicians been effective over the years and shown enough governance to drive the country’s growth in a sustainable manner?

6. Why are politicians lining up together and attacking the government?

Praut said: “All [these questions] I have asked because I would like you, Thai people, to help consider, and then reply to me. Power and democracy all are yours.”

The party said the junta had promised to consider lifting the ban after the Royal funeral but last week it again cited social disturbances as well as incomplete legal enactment of related organic laws to maintain its ban.

The party viewed this as going against the will of the political party law, which requires parties to hold activities for the coming election. The Constitution, it added, also guarantees the right to form political parties.

The junta, therefore, should follow the will of these laws and not go against it by maintaining the ban, it said.

The National Legislative Assembly’s constitution and organic law study committee allows legislators who would like to take part in the law-scrutiny committee to sign themselves up, NLA whip member Wallop Tangkananurak explained yesterday.

Names would be submitted to NLA vice president Surachai Liengboonlertchai for the law study committee to endorse, Wallop said.

If the number of people signed up exceeded the seats available, the NLA would decide who would take the posts, he added.

“In the case of Pol Gen Patcharawat, he has signed up to sit on the panel following the process,” the legislator said. “But regarding the criticism whether it is appropriate, it is up to Patcharawat how he considers the matter.”

Another NLA member, Somchai Sawangkarn, said yesterday that Patcharawat sitting on the panel was not a problem so long as he does not propose anything that might be considered to be in his own interests.

Controversy arose last week after Patcharawat appeared in the list of legislators considering the organic law governing NACC. Patcharawat has been accused of being unusually rich and the case is being probed by the agency.

Critics were concerned whether it was appropriate to have him on the panel when he was a stakeholder.

The president of the controversial vetting committee, Pol Gen Chatchawal Suksomjit, said yesterday the committee had already convened once on Monday and the criticism involving Patcharawat had not been raised in the meeting.

“The committee discussed only the law. The criticism is a personal perspective of each individual. It is not against the law and poses no problem to the meeting, so we did not discuss it,” he said.

PRIME MINISTER GENERAL Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday refused to rule out the formation of a political party by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) ahead of the general election currently set for next November.

“I’m not thinking about [setting up a party] now but I’ll see how the situation is in the future. There is a year to think about it,” Prayut said after the weekly Cabinet meeting.

Speculation has arisen that the junta might retain power since Prayut clarified the timeline for an election and his Cabinet approaches its fourth shake-up, possibly to prepare for the political arena heating up during the election period.

However, the NCPO has maintained its ban against political gatherings of five or more people as well as political activities, which has hindered parties from carrying out authorised activity since the 2014 coup.

Politicians have criticised the relevant NCPO order No 57/2014, which prevents them from preparing for the election in line with the timeline stipulated by the new political party bill. Failing to do so could disqualify them from contesting the next election.

However, Prayut yesterday promised that he would use his “absolute power”, in reference to Article 44 of the interim Constitution, to extend the preparatory time for parties if necessary.

Article 141 of the political party bill also allows parties to request extensions from the Election Commission registrar, which could grant permission on a case-by-case basis, according to an explanatory paper provided by the NCPO.

There were also other factors unrelated to the NCPO, Prayut said, which could affect the designated timeline for the election.

“The NCPO concluded this morning that the current situation was not yet settled. The country is still in a period when it should not go through a conflict of any kind,” the paper stated.

“The remaining two organic bills involving MP elections and the Senate selection, which are essential, have not yet gone to Parliament; the new Election Commissioners are still being sought and we don’t know when that will be settled. The registrar for political parties also has not yet been appointed.

“We ask that the political ‘unlocking’ be delayed longer,” the paper concluded. “But you don’t have to worry. We promised that the election will happen within 150 days after the essential laws are all enacted.”

The two bills being drafted by the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC) are expected to be submitted to the National Legislative Assembly by the end of the month.

Meanwhile, Prayut brushed aside speculation that the NCPO had already organised a nominee party in cooperation with a retired Army major-general, who has set up a “volunteer movement” that is functioning similar to how political parties operate.

Critics have expressed doubt that the movement could be developed as a political party to support Prayut to become the next prime minister and encourage defections by former MPs from other parties.

Prayut said he did not personally know Maj-General Songklod Theprat, a former member of the NCPO’s national reform working group, and had no knowledge of his activities.

He also said he was not thinking about stealing the political base of the previously dominant Pheu Thai Party.

“All parties depend on people’s choices. They can choose whatever they want, as long as it does not cause a stir,” he said.

Regarding rampant speculation about a fourth Cabinet reshuffle, Prayut said there would not be quotas for the military or civilian officials.

“But I don’t want anyone to be biased against military officers. Who did all the work when we didn’t have a post-coup Cabinet yet?” he asked rhetorically. “Why would you hate the military that much?”

Meanwhile, Meechai Ruchupan, head of the CDC and a member of the NCPO, said members of the so-called “five rivers of power” had the right to found a political party, but denied any knowledge that they would do so. The “five rivers” refers to the five dominant bodies in the current junta-led government.

Establishing a political party was a political right for everyone, he added. Members of the “rivers of power”, however, are barred from contesting elections unless they resigned from their post within 90 days after the recent charter went into effect, according to the Constitution.

Meechai said he did not know if anyone would attempt to pull the strings behind the scenes, but warned that such actions were unconstitutional and punishable by a political ban and the dissolution of a party.

He added that he did not think it was necessary to found a party to keep the political balance after the coup regime steps down.

Responding to speculation that a military-backed party could protect current government leaders from retaliation after the election, Meechai said such vengeful acts would be difficult unless the junta-backed government had actually committed wrongdoing.

The Finance Ministry will lose about Bt2 billion in personal income tax collection as a result of the campaign, but the retail and other sectors will probably gain a combined Bt10 billion in sales during the promotion that will run from November 11 to December 3.

While many items are covered by the campaign, alcoholic beverages, tobacco, hotel rooms, airline tickets, cars, motorcycles, boats and fuel are not included.

Businesses have to issue value-added tax invoices for customers to claim the tax deduction.

Nuttaporn Jatusripitak, an adviser at the Prime Minister’s Office, said the campaign was aimed at people planning to buy goods and services worth up to Bt15,000 per person during the period as they would be entitled to personal income tax deductions based on the value of the items they bought.

The campaign is intended to spur domestic consumption ahead of the year-end festive season, while prompting more small and medium-sized businesses to register so that their customers are entitled to the tax break.

The short-term promotion is timed to avoid causing a negative impact on the festive season with the national economy projected to gain another 0.05 per cent this year.

Nuttaporn said tourism and related activities were not covered in the campaign as there would be a separate promotion at a later date. He added that the Revenue Department was working on a plan that would provide holidaymakers with tax incentives if they buy air tickets from airlines that pay VAT in Thailand.

The committee, as addressed in the regulation, would be chaired by a prime minister, joined by related ministers including the ministerial head of the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, forestry chiefs, as well as appointed forestry experts.

They would also oversee work by related agencies to be in line with the policies and strategies addressed, but these must be subject to Cabinet approval first.

The panel would also be able to recommend legal amendments, as well as regulations in regard to zoning and land use in forested areas, according to the newly published regulation.

The CDC had previously planned to submit the Senate bill to the NLA for deliberation first, on November 21.

However, it decided that as some of the content of the two bills was linked, they should be written to be in line with one another, Meechai said.

The commission has therefore revised some content in the MPs election bill and will submit it along with the Senate selection bill to the NLA, he said.

There should be just one NLA law-vetting committee on these two pieces of legislation, so that it can help look into details in the two bills that could be linked together, the CDC chief said, adding that he would propose this point for the NLA to consider.

A law-vetting committee is normally appointed to look into an organic bill that has passed the NLA’s first reading.

Pol Colonel Krisana Patanacharoen, deputy spokesman of the Royal Thai Police, said on Tuesday that none of the 192 member countries had informed the Bangkok Interpol office of any clues as to the location of the fugitive politician.

However, Thai police are gathering more evidence to send to Interpol in order to get a blue notice issued on her, he said, adding that they are continually coordinating with the international crime agency.

The blue notice is used for requesting help to collect information regarding a criminal’s whereabouts or related crime activities.

“If she is located in any country, the Interpol member would notify Thai authorities immediately,” he stressed.

It has been more than a month since the Bangkok Interpol office sent the request for a blue notice to the France-based agency.

Thai police requested Interpol’s assistance in late September after Yingluck was sentenced in absentia to five years in jail following her trial for negligence of duty in regard to her administration’s rice-pledging scheme.

The latest news of her whereabouts was disclosed by Thai authorities early last month, when they said that Yingluck had left Dubai for London.

Late last month, all four Thai passports held by Yingluck were revoked by the Foreign Ministry, as a result of which the former premier will no longer be able to travel from one country to another using those documents.

Rumours have been circulating that Yingluck plans to seek political asylum in the United Kingdom.

Last week, the UK authorities informed Thailand that if she came to stay in the country, she would need to follow the normal immigration process, but there would not be an issue of political asylum.

Yingluck fled Thailand on August 23 and has been wanted since August 25, when she failed to show up to hear the final ruling in the negligence case against her.

She was sentenced in her absence a month later to five years in jail.

Yingluck has neither been heard from nor seen since she fled the Kingdom.

To claim that the government needs to finish resolving one problem before moving on to another is equivalent to dragging its feet in returning democracy to the people, he suggested.

The government’s roadmap, as such, has become merely an excuse, which goes against its stated goal and extends its work period in office, he said, adding that this prevented politicians from taking up office.

Phumtham said the new political party law was already in effect and required parties to undertake several related activities.

This is a necessary condition for the work and provides the opening up of democratic space in which politicians can reach the people, he said.

The ruling junta has not yet lifted its ban on political gatherings and activities despite the fact that the new law has been in place since early October.

As Singapore will chair the Asean Conference and the Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting next year, Ng stressed that more military engagement with non-Asean countries, such as India and China, was necessary to increase regional security.

Prayut and Ng also agreed to increase intelligence exchange and security monitoring, said Deputy Spokesperson Maj Gen Werachon Sukondhapatipak.

Ng was visiting Thailand as a guest of Thai Defence Ministry.