Legacy of coup must be aborted after election, say leading politicians

Speaking at a “Where is Thailand Heading To” panel, major political players Anutin Charnvirakul, Sudarat Kayurapan, Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit and Parit Wacharasindhu all agreed that democracy, and not a coup d’etat, was the key answer to the problems facing the country. But effective democracy would require participants to respect both rules and election results, they said.
The panel was hosted by veteran journalist Suthichai Yoon, founder of The Nation.
The panelists also took similar stances over the post-election legacy of the NCPO-backed Constitution. The Constitution must be undone to ensure that it does not paralyse future governments and prevent them from delivering meaningful policies, the politicians agreed.
The elected MPs must have a mandate giving them decision-making power above that of the junta-appointed senators and be able to push for substantial constitutional amendments, they said.
Anutin, leader of the medium-sized Bhumjaithai Party, called on fellow politicians to unite against the charter. If the 500 MPs could consolidate their agendas, they would have more power than the 250 senators to be appointed by the junta in a move widely viewed as an intent to counter democratic power and carry on the junta legacy.
The billionaire also urged all parties to respect the rules to prevent both future coups and loss of life in street demonstrations.
Sudarat, potentially the next leader of Pheu Thai Party, pledged to push for a referendum to amend all problematic clauses in the Constitution to eliminate the mechanisms trapping future governments, while leaving sections regarding the monarchy.
Sudarat said Pheu Thai could not by itself keep the country clear of military coups. Rather, everyone must lend a hand, she said in response to the criticism that the former coalition-leading party had not previously done enough to protect democracy.
Thanathorn, a new player and founder of the neophyte Future Forward party, meanwhile pledged he would do anything to prevent a coup from taking place again.
Keeping the military away from politics was the prime mission that drove him to politics, he said. No current politicians represented what he wanted to see in a government, so he had to leave his happy life and enter politics, he said. That move has already brought him several death threats in the less than a month since the party’s official launch, Thanathorn said.
Dubbed as the hope of the new politics, Thanathorn said he was ready to go to jail or even sacrifice his life for the democratic cause.
Parit, a nephew of former PM Abhisit Vejjajiva, refused to discuss past events for which the Democrat Party has been accused by some as standing against democracy for refusing to accept election results and playing outside the rules.
While stressing he was not yet officially part of the party, Parit said future Democrats would learn to lose and respect the rules. Liberal democracy remained the one and only way for the country to go and the coup was not the answer, the 25-year-old emphasised.
With Future Forward gaining public attention as an injection of new blood and ideas in conflict-plagued Thai politics, Parit championed the idea of New Democrats – younger party members who would play substantial roles, too.
However, the party’s older values would not be forsaken, he said. Past experiences have resulted in lessons that could also contribute greatly to the country, Parit said.