'Thaksin's return home is long overdue'

Why is the Pheu Thai pushing for the amnesty bill now?

MPs had earlier voted to put Pheu Thai MP Worachai Hema’s bill at the top of the parliamentary agenda. The party wanted to deliberate the 2014 fiscal budget bill, but the committee vetting the bill has yet to finish it.

 

Will this bill spark conflicts inside and outside Parliament?

It depends if people respect the majority decision. 

This bill aims to pardon people – both the red shirts and the yellow shirts – who joined the protests with honest intentions. 

I believe people who oppose this bill do not have pity for those people.

 

How would you sum up the current situation, since the Democrats are responding in full force?

I personally believe political rallies this time will not escalate. I hope they do not spark any serious issues that impact the country.

 

The opposition has interpreted the word “leaders” in the bill as people such as ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra, what do you think?

The committee vetting the bill will have to identify them. I cannot see how Thaksin can fall in this category. This bill has made it clear that the word ‘leaders’ does not include Thaksin. But this depends on how each individual interprets it.

 

If the amnesty bill and the Bt2-trillion loan bill are passed, do you think the government will serve a full term?

The government will stay a full term because Thais voted us in with 265 seats. If the government does not stay the full term, it will be because of a military coup and the military has reiterated that this will not happen.

 

Do you think the Bt350-billion loan decree and Bt2-trillion loan bill violate the law?

The government is likely to proceed with the [anti-flood] project. If the government causes any fallout, it will not be allowed to return. Corruption allegations are not the reason that all of the water projects must be scrapped. Corruption cases can be proved in court.

 

Are you worried that opponents will bring down the government by using legal tactics?

They are resorting to all legal tactics possible. It is tiring, but we must move forward because we have a social contract. 

If we do nothing about incidents like the massive flooding in 2011, how can we survive until today? This is a must-do job. Bt350 billion may sound like a lot, but if we can help prevent loss of life, even one life is worth it.

 

Reports say that Chiang Mai MP Yaowapa Wongsawat [Somchai’s wife] has been accused of corruption in the rice-pledging scheme. 

I must insist that Yaowapa has not gained anything. I guarantee this with my life. If Yaowapa took even one single baht, you can come and behead me. 

I have a duty to keep politics as calm as possible and do anything that does not adversely affect the Yingluck government or Yingluck herself. 

We have never thought of using her position to make money, we are more civilised than that. I am not rich, but I have never made money illegally. This is because of my background as a judge. My family would never do such things. The fact that Yaowapa is Yingluck’s sister has caused people’s imagination to run wild. This project has suffered losses, but losses and corruption are different issues. If corruption is suspected, there must be an investigation. We are close to former commerce minister Boonsong Teriyapirom, but that does not mean we have teamed up for the purposes of exploitation.

 

Will the government stumble if the National Anti-Corruption Commission finds the corruption allegations in the rice-pledging scheme are true?

The government and the PM issued this policy. Corruption has nothing to do with the PM. Arrest the people who are corrupt not the one who issues the policy.

 

Is it possible that independent agencies could a factor in the collapse of the government?

I hope not. I am confident that they are neutral. Even though no agency can check the independent agencies, people can.

 

Is it time for Thaksin to return home?

It is long overdue. Everyone wants justice. You can starve, bake in the sun, but you cannot withstand injustice. When Thaksin said he wanted to return home in style, it did not mean he would be dressed attractively when he stepped out of the plane. What he meant was that when he returned, he did not want to see people fighting one another.