Army chief defends using reservists, students as charter explainers
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Army chief General Teerachai Nakwanich Wednesday defended the move to have Thai Reserve Officers and Training Corps Students explain content to the public on the charter draft and was not to mislead them to vote yes or no in a public referendum.
Teerachai told a meeting of Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha wanted him to explain that the students had been sent to tell the public of the significance of a public referendum on a charter draft.
The students also explained to the people about reform content in the charter draft. They would also accept feedback and recommendations from the public over the draft.
The questions from the public would be answered during the programme “Decipher the Charter”.
“The students volunteered to creatively educate the public about the draft with a “public mind” and conscience in the country’s interest. They do not want anything in return,” he said.
The students have been doing the fieldwork for two months and followed the regulations on a public referendum, he said. “We know what we are doing. They are not going to stand in front of polling booths on the voting date. We just want the people to exercise their voting right as much as possible regardless of whether they will vote no or yes,” he said.
