NRC members must cover all hues of political spectrum
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THIS WEEK we will know who the appointed members of the National Reform Council (NRC) are, who will be playing a key role in reforming Thailand in many areas. Their role will involve not only the drafting of a new constitution, but also amendments and adj
These newly appointed members of the NRC will first meet to elect the council’s president. Two leading candidates for the seat are Thienchai Kiranun and Chai-anan Samudavanija.
The provisional charter stipulates that within 15 days of the NRC’s first meeting, the council president has to set up a Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC), which consists mostly of people nominated by NRC members.
The CDC’s chief is nominated by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), which also can appoint five other constitution drafters. The NRC is empowered to nominate 20 CDC members, and the Cabinet and the National Legislative Assembly can each name five.
The interim charter also requires that within 60 days of its first meeting, the NRC has to submit its comments and suggestions about reforms to the CDC. The proposals to be made by the reform council will come mainly from the working groups that have gathered comments from the public since the coup in May.
The charter drafting panel has 120 days to write a new constitution. The draft will be submitted to the NRC to vote whether to endorse or adjust it. In all, a new constitution is expected within 295 days after the NRC convenes its meeting.
If the NRC fails to finish its deliberation on the draft constitution within the given time or does not approve the draft, the council and the CDC “shall expire”, according to the interim charter. If that was the case, a new NRC and CDC would be appointed to complete the job, a process that could take another year.
While waiting for a draft constitution from the CDC, the NRC has the duty of studying, analysing and preparing proposals on reform in different areas to be submitted to the NLA, the Cabinet and the NCPO.
If things go as advertised by the NCPO, we should get NRC members who are capable, well qualified and reliable – a very important mission. However, a leaked list of NRC members has indicated that most of them opposed the previous government led by the Pheu Thai Party. This may not bode well for the hopes for a balanced reform.
A good reform needs to get acceptance and confidence from all sides of people in society. Without widespread support from the public, the reform efforts could fail.
We just hope that the final list of NRC members to be announced later this week will consist of people from different groups of the political spectrum. If not, we fear there could be a new round of conflict, as some groups may feel they are left out of this latest round of reform.
