FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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Group 'ready' with nominee for PM

Group 'ready' with nominee for PM

Committee will go public if Yingluck, Cabinet step down, and will step up pressure if they don't, says Thaworn

The People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) already has the name of the person it intends to nominate as interim prime minister, and has also drawn up the proposed membership of a “people’s council”.
It is ready to announce the names to the public immediately if Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her Cabinet resign from their caretaking duties, core PDRC co-leader Thaworn Senneam said yesterday.
He insisted that the Yingluck government was illegitimate, since it had rejected the Constitutional Court’s ruling on amending the charter to make the Senate a fully elected body.
“The PDRC would not accuse the caretaker Cabinet of violating Article 157 of the Criminal Code if they stepped down from their role. But if Yingluck and her fellow Cabinet members do not so, we are ready to put more pressure on them to get them out of their posts this week,” he said.
PDRC leaders have readied themselves for the appointment of an interim prime minister and the forming of a people’s council, under Article 3 of the Constitution.
“I have no idea what will happen first. In some revolutions, a council is established first, but sometimes a prime minister is appointed first. The PDRC will make a decision in accordance with the prevailing situation,” he added.
According to Thaworn, the structure of a people’s council would comprise groups representing different professions, civil society, government officers and the media, with the qualification that they have not been prosecuted for corruption or seizure of property, among things.
“We had learned from the lessons of the National Legislative Assembly and Constitution Drafting Committee. And we would prevent the people’s council from making
the same mistakes as them,” he insisted.
However, the people’s council would not contain too many members, he said, because there would be no need for them to vote as they would use discussion and consultation to find a consensus in their important role, especially in the drafting process for a new constitution and related laws.
The PDRC co-leader admitted that the committee needed to explain in more detail to the public how articles 3 and 7 of the Constitution were to be applied in this situation, because the “people’s revolution” was a new movement of Thailand.
“Overturning the constitution is not that difficult, but if we did so, the PDRC would have no mandate, according to the law, to order agencies [to carry out tasks]. We could use an interim constitution, and actually we have prepared and we can use the previous edition, but that’s for the future,” he said.
“At this time, the PDRC cannot claim that it has absolutely won. But, once it does, it is preparing to call for the heads of government offices to report to the PDRC to perform as a caretaker cabinet. You know government officers always obey their bosses,” he said.
He said the most important condition that would show the PDRC had achieved victory was that it now had somebody who would become the next premier. “Now we have someone [a candidate to be the next PM] who is sincere and not corrupt. [If] we cannot find someone who is [totally] innocent [in life], we can choose the most innocent,” he said.

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