The Thammasat University’s lecturer added that the slogan was a mere propaganda sold to the middle class.

“When they say it would curb graft, who would not like it? [It would be as if you are an immoral person when you disagree],” Piyabutr said.

He explained that the real function of constitutions was to arrange the power relations of political institutions and to guarantee people’s freedom and rights.

“The hope in combating graft lies in the political culture of democracy,” the law professor noted.

“However, when under a dictatorship, we cannot see any corruption case because there is no check mechanism, unlike democratic regimes,” he said.

“When we have democracy, the check mechanism works. We have freedom of expression to question or to express opinions. That is how corruption cases are discovered,” Piyabutr said.

He said mechanisms to curb graft in the latest charter draft put more weight on the elected body, and that was not balanced.

“There are mechanisms to check the elected but not the courts, the army, the civil servants…. As if corruption only occurs among the elected,” he said.

He concluded that the “graft-curbing constitution” was merely a propaganda that would not work in reality.

Aside from that, the lecturer noted that the current regime would still retain power after the new constitution is adopted, if it passes the planned referendum in August.

Piyabutr said that in the 21st century, there is hardly any place for dictatorship. While many people might not feel that two years [since the coup was staged in 2014] was a long time, it was not a short time “considering we are in the 21st century”, he said.

But, as international relations was an important part of state-craft, dictators usually needed to find ways to transform themselves and blend in as democratic regimes.

The law professor said such attempts could be seen in the current charter draft as well. Article 265, for instance, allowed the power of the coup-maker under Article 44 of the 2014 interim charter to persist, if the new charter passes the referendum and is adopted.

“And Article 44 allows the junta to do almost anything. When the charter says that the regime will be around only until the next Cabinet is set up, there is no guarantee that the junta will not use Article 44 to defer the election or something to delay the establishment of the new cabinet,” Piyabutr said.

The survey was conducted on 3,500 people in all regions of the country during May 9 to 15.

People in the Central region were the happiest with an average score of 7.39 out of 10, director of the university’s Masters of Political Science programme, Chanchai Chitlaoarporn, told a press conference yesterday.

When asked whether they are happy, the average score for those who said “not bad” was 6.65. The scores in relation to their happiness over their physical and mental states were 7.03 and 6.26 respectively.

Asked about how successful ministries have been in returning happiness to the people, most people were happy with the Prime Minister’s Office at 8.25, followed by the Ministry of Defence (8.13) and Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (8.02). Overall, the score for “OK” was 6.28.

The popular ministries were those that work closely with the people. The PM made a connection with the public; the Ministry of Defence orders military personnel to help communities during flood and drought crises; and Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives works with farmers.

Ministries with the lowest scores were the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology at 5.03, 4.97 and 4.52 respectively.

Asked which issue they want the government to solve before the next general election, most said improving their quality of life (21.5 per cent), followed by the economy, trade and investment (18.7 per cent), and agricultural reform and crop prices (15.4 per cent).

In a related development, the Pheu Thai Party decried the coup, saying it had changed people’s lives for the worst and downgraded the democracy people fought for in the ‘Black May’ incident of 1992.

On May 17, 1992, people bravely fought the then-powers that be and did not allow undemocratic principles, namely having a mechanism to select an “outsider PM or an unelected PM” enshrined in constitution, according to the party’s statement.

Pheu Thai said a “double standard” still remained in society in relation to justice being served in some matters.

It said the May 2010 political protest resulted in 99 deaths and justice still had not been served.

The party said offenders had not been sentenced despite, in many cases, the Court of Justice concluding crimes had been committed.

Don said Russia wanted to buy 80,000 tonnes of natural rubber and an amount of rice, while Thailand wanted to purchase Russian-made helicopters to be used in fighting bushfires.

A working group from both countries will discuss details of the barter deal, such as the exact amount of products involved, the foreign minister said.

Russia also promised to support Thailand’s bid to become a new member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), Don said, adding that the Kingdom was preparing to apply to join the group.

He said that by joining the EEU, Thailand’s goal of boosting trade volume with Russia by five times in five years, to Bt320 billion, would be more easily achieved.

Prime Minister Prayut has called on Russia to help Thailand develop innovative technologies to boost the competitiveness of the Kingdom’s products in the world market.

While in St Petersburg earlier this week, Prayut and seven of his Cabinet ministers gave a detailed account to Russian business people on what Thailand wants from Russia.

During his visit to Russia, General Prayut emphasised the fact that better technology would give added value to Thailand’s traditional export goods and reduce the impact of climate change, according to a report by Russia Beyond the Headlines.

“We want Russia to help our country in the development of innovative technologies, so that our products become competitive … Technology is also a kind of investment,” Prayut said.

He gave a detailed list of industries, which could gain from the use of new technologies such as agriculture, aircraft and mechanical engineering, and robotics.

The Thai leader mentioned the need for a balance between industrial development and the preservation of nature, and how this could be achieved by using green technologies. He also called for the creation of institutions with Russia to study innovation.

“The countries that have technologies can cope better with financial crises,” he said at the Russian-Thai Business Forum at the Four Seasons Hotel on the day before the Asean-Russia summit in Sochi.

But before describing what his country needs from Russia, Prayut took an indirect swipe at the United States, according to Russia Beyond the Headlines. He thanked his hosts for not interfering in the internal affairs of Thailand, and made it clear that his government’s foreign policy was guided by domestic politics. “Our priority is the well-being of the Thai people,” he said. “We want Thailand to flourish.” An analysis of the prime minister’s 90-minute speech made it clear that Thailand was looking for three things from Russia: a market for Thai goods, technologies and investments, Russia Beyond the Headlines reported.

Goal to boost trade five-fold

“We cannot wait,” he said. “We have to work and increase our trade turnover five-fold in five years.”

In 2015, this figure amounted to only US$2 billion (Bt70 billion). However, he lamented the fact that although Russia and Thailand had “similar intentions”, the countries apparently “did not understand each other very well.” He also called on Russia to invest in Thailand.

Russian businessmen who went to his address were not prepared for the Thai prime minister saying so much and in such detail. Prayut essentially called on them to help upgrade the Thai economy, it said.

The Russian business community, however, accepted the challenge, Russia Beyond the Headlines said.

According to Alexei Repik, president of the Russian public organisation Delovaya Rossiya (Business Russia), Russian companies are ready to offer everything Prayut needs. “Thailand will not buy uncompetitive technologies from Russia and will not work in those niches where it can find a more efficient partner,” Repik said.

He said the main barrier between Russia and Thailand was there were areas where the parties have never cooperated. Repik said the countries needed to set ambitious goals.

As an example, he cited the private Russian-Thai Business House – established at the beginning of 2016 – through which $30 million (Bt1 billion) worth of contracts has been signed between companies from |the non-primary sectors of the economy.

“We have never chosen sides. We are a free country.”

Thailand wants to maintain good ties with all countries, he said.

He dismissed speculation that there were negotiations for helicopters or weapons. Any weapons purchase would have to be made on a government-to-government level.

However, security was on the agenda during his meeting with Russian leaders.

Prayut told media outlet Russia Beyond the Headlines last week that he was interested in buying Russian dual-use helicopters and military hardware.

He also said this week that the deals, if there were any, were nothing out of the ordinary.

“Do you want military officers to stick with old, worn-out hardware? They have lives, too,” he said.

General Prayut told reporters in Russia that expectations were high over his latest Russian visit.

Both countries would celebrate 120 years of diplomatic relations by ensuring closer ties.

“Both countries have had diplomatic ties for a long time but they lack continuation,” he said.

On Wednesday, Prayut vowed to boost cooperation with Russia in various fields including tourism, science and technology, and trade during a discussion with Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev in Saint Petersburg.

During their fourth meeting since Prayut came to power, the Thai PM told Medvedev that Thailand was prepared to welcome more Russian tourists by relaunching Thai Airway International’s Bangkok-Moscow route by the end of this year.

Familiarisation trips were also being prepared to serve inbound Russian tourists.

Despite the occasional reports of abuse against tourists by Thais, Prayut ensured Medvedev of Thailand’s safety as a tourist destination.

Russians’ enthusiasm for travelling to Thailand slumped along with their economy two years ago.

The situation has gradually improved following Russia’s conflicts with Turkey and its flight suspensions to Egypt, resulting in more Russians visiting Thailand.

Russian arrivals spurted 15.3 per cent to 440,000 in the first quarter, recovering from last year’s drop of 52.8 per cent.

Prayut expressed Thailand’s |interest in Russia’s science and |technology expertise, inviting its agencies to host space technology exhibitions in the Kingdom to augment Thai knowledge in the speciality.

He thanked Medvedev for supporting the signing a cooperation between the National Science and Technology Development Agency and the Skolkovo Innovation Centre, stressing that technology and innovation are essential for Thailand to promote startups.

Prayut asked Russia to consider increasing imports of Thai foods and agricultural products.

He invited Russia to invest in the Kingdom’s super cluster and special economic zones, especially in the digital, aircraft, biotechnology and nano technology industries.

Thailand is focusing on legal amendments and infrastructure to create an investor-friendly environment.

He reiterated Thailand’s ambition to boost trade fivefold with Russia within five years.

After the discussion, they witnessed the signing of six memoranda of understanding for agriculture, fishery, finance and banking information exchanges, and environmental protection as well as eight private MoUs for energy, science and small and medium-sized enterprise support.

They also witnessed the inking of 11 documents by both countries’ private sector worth about US$1 billion, making Thailand the second biggest Asean investor in Russia.

Prayut yesterday left St Petersburg for Sochi, where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin before attending the Asean-Russian Commemorative Summit today to end his official trip to the country.

The training for the 380 people, five from each province except Bangkok, was conducted by the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC) and the Interior Ministry.

Presiding over the launch of the training session, CDC chairman Meechai Ruchupan said his commission’s subcommittee on public relations and surveys, led by Chartchai na Chiangmai, has categorised those selected into three groups.

The first group, which was present at yesterday’s event, was named Kru Kor and the members would be trained to become charter specialists at the provincial level. They will share their knowledge on the draft charter with the second group, Kru Koh, who will become charter draft specialists at the district level.

Kru Koh will then pass their knowledge on to the third group, Kru Khor, who will become draft charter specialists at the village level.

There had previously been concerns that the move to have these specialists disseminate draft charter content in the provinces would give rise to conflicts with opponents in communities. However, this concern has been dismissed as those selected to join the training are well- known figures who are accepted by the locals.

Meechai said the CDC pinned its hopes on the Kru Kor group, as they will become top specialists and will pass on their knowledge to teams overseeing dissemination of information at district and village levels.

The CDC chief added that the training would only focus on the draft charter content, and in no way guide the specialists to influence votes.

He also dismissed concerns about political moves to get voters to reject the draft charter afterDemocrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva reportedly urged people to vote down the draft.

Meechai also insisted that the draft charter was not depriving people of their rights as it contains provisions that guarantee rights, such as consumer rights as well as the right to sue the state, including the Cabinet and state agencies, for failure to enforce law.

“I would like people to read the draft charter’s content instead of just criticising it outright. We should think about the country’s benefit more,” he said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said it was fine that the Election Commission (EC) was holding a platform for politicians to discuss the draft charter content on today at the Royal Thai Army Club, adding that this would allow the EC to clarify any doubts politicians might have about the draft charter.

Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam, members of the National Reform Steering Assembly and the National Legislative Assembly will also be present to answer questions raised by the politicians, he said. Prawit added that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had also agreed with the plan to hold such platforms because the government has been accused of not setting up a stage allowing for the explanation of the draft charter. The National Council for Peace and Order will not be present at the event because it has nothing to do with it, he added.

Prawit also said that he was confident the platform will ease the political tension caused by politicians strongly attacking the draft charter.

Meanwhile, Meechai said he would dispatch the best legal experts to attend the event and help clarify doubts raised by the politicians. He said nobody would be stopped from expressing their honest opinion about the draft charter.

Separately, some members of Neo Democracy group led by Pakorn Areekul and Chonthicha Chaengrew showed up at the Bangkok hotel where the training was being held to distribute leaflets carrying anti-draft charter messages.

Meechai also received a copy but did not say anything.

Pakorn said his group just wanted people to have “both sides of the story”. The group left the hotel without any hassles.