Study the NSRRC in detail first: PM
PRIME Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday called on the public to study the proposal to set up a National Strategic Reform and Reconciliation Committee (NSRRC) before judging it, saying previous political conflicts had no way out other than military inte
The prime minister has dismissed speculation that the National Council for Peace and Order or the government would benefit from this committee, saying the NSRRC would exist for a specific purpose, especially in times of crisis.
Prayut said that as a coup leader, he had experienced incidents that had given rise to violence and the elected government failed to handle it. This is why, he said, a new mechanism is needed because the drafters did not want to see the military lead another coup.
After all, he asked, if the NSRRC did not exist, how would the country pull out of a deadlock without a coup?
“I had to lead a coup because at that time, nobody could do anything [about the political deadlock], but people keep slamming me for it,” the PM said.
“I never said I was good. Democracy is certainly the best, but to what extent it is applied and when is another matter. Who would come and intervene if we encounter such a deadlock again? The military?
“I trust that the drafters included this committee in the charter because they wanted to prevent a coup from happening and push the country towards an election. If you are confident that we will not plunge into such a deadlock again, then fine, go ahead with your decision. But if not, you should study this first,” the prime minister said.
He also called on the public to study the entire content of the draft charter, because people did not really know much about it yet.
He added that politicians tended to mislead people, so they should study it themselves and share information on it in a holistic manner.
Prayut also said people should help monitor the next government and see if it is pursuing the reform plan. The National Reform Council has proposed 37 reform agendas as well as a strategic plan.
So the next government should follow the plan and people should monitor it. Otherwise, he said, the proposed reforms would not be completely implemented as the government would only pursue its own policies, which have often failed the public in the past.
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