Suthep, Seri face EC over Bangkok election
Seri Wongmonta, an academic on mass communications, and Democrat leading member Suthep Thaugsuban, on Tuesday met investigators of the Election Commission to deny charges of having framed the Pheu Thai gubernatorial candidate.
Seri met the sub-committee of the Bangkok Election Commission at the EC head office and denied he had framed Pheu Thai candidate Pongsapat Pongcharoen as alleged by former senator Ruangkrai Likijwatana.
Seri told the sub-committee he had nothing to do with the Democrats and he clearly stated that his article urging Bangkok voters to vote for Democrat candidate Sukhumbhand Paribatra was his personal view and analysis based on facts.
Seri said he did not frame Pongsapat-- but he simply considered that Pongsapat belonged to the Pheu Thai.
He said his article re-published on the M-Thai web was edited to remove some parts.
Seri noted that several other persons wrote similar comments on the Bangkok governor’s election so it was a double standard for the EC to single him out.
Suthep yesterday met the sub-committee and denied he had framed Pongsapat during Sukhumbhand’s election campaign. During the election rally, Suthep said, he simply talked about facts he had learned.
The sub-committee accused Suthep of framing the Pheu Thai Party, with allegations that the Pheu Thai and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra planned to seize Bangkok as a base for terrorism, and that Thaksin was controlling the Pheu Thai’s election.
Suthep said he won the sub-committee’s permission to submit his explanations on May 14.
