Charter must empower public to fight graft, Ongart says

The recommendation is one of four proposals the party has made to revise the charter draft.
Democrat Party deputy leader Ongart Klampaiboon said the charter draft should have mechanisms and systems that allowed every sector of society to take part in combating corruption.
He said the charter draft should provide a system designed to protect people who tip off officials about corruption and provide witness protection as part of the justice procedure.
He said the charter draft should ensure the full disclosure of official information as a key measure to prevent corruption.
The charter draft must have principles and mechanisms aimed at preventing interference in the justice system from upstream to downstream and designed to prevent every level of corruption.
“Developed countries such as Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore have channels for people to take part in fighting corruption but this charter draft has none. This charter draft should not be just lip service or have only ineffective anti-graft measures,’’ he said.

Transitional period
Ongart said the Cabinet’s proposal to revise the charter draft so there was a transitional period ahead of the next general election must be considered cautiously because the CDC and the Cabinet did not seem to understand the issues as they could not explain them in detail or give examples of them.
Ongart suggested that there should not be two different periods of enforcement of the charter but only one normal system.
He said the charter draft already had mechanisms aimed at preventing problems that may arise and that the Cabinet was concerned about.

‘PM could prevent turmoil’
Ongart dismissed the Cabinet’s concerns that political turmoil could follow the election.
He said the National Council for Peace and Order and the PM had absolute control to prevent turmoil before the charter was promulgated.
He said the Cabinet’s 16 proposals might erode public confidence in the junta because people could interpret them as an attempt by the junta to hold on to power.
He urged the CDC to carefully consider the proposals but added: “It is best not to accept them at all.’’