‘Not possible’ for NCPO to run election: Prawit
DEPUTY PRIME Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan yesterday rejected the possibility that the ruling National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) and the Interior Ministry would organise the next general election instead of the Election Commission (EC).
Prawit, who is also defence minister, was responding to proposals from the political reform committee of the National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA), which suggested that the Interior Ministry take the EC’s place to organise the poll under the NCPO’s supervision.
“This issue is not clear yet, but I don’t think this will be possible,” Prawit said after a Cabinet meeting. “The EC’s title already suggests that it oversees elections. If it doesn’t have the authority, how can it be an independent agency?”
However, Prawit suggested that there could be a possibility that the EC would seek support personnel, such as reserve officer training corps students, to help to conduct the election.
“But civil servants shouldn’t be involved,” he said. “Eventually, it’s up to the EC on how it organises the election.”
After a two-day meeting, the NRSA’s committee decided yesterday to revise its proposal, saying a general election could be carried out by the EC or the Interior Ministry under the EC’s supervision.
The panel also said everybody – “including the NCPO” – should “support” the EC in organising a free and fair election. The model should be tested in local elections, the panel concluded.
Committee member Wanchai Sornsiri said that the panel would also recommend that the NCPO and the government consider the idea of helping the EC in the upcoming elections.
Surachai Liengboonlertchai, vice president of the National Legislative Assembly, said the assembly had to ensure that the proposals did not violate the approved draft charter while deliberating the bills.
He said he had instructed the assembly’s standing committee to study related clauses in the charter and gather recommendations from related sectors before deliberating the bills.
Meanwhile, NRSA member Nakorn Sukprasert proposed that a new organic law on the EC should authorise the commission to assign state agencies or set up a specific election panel to help organise specific votes or referendums. The new committee will be separate from the main agency, and only help to regulate elections.
The committee could be comprised of experts from state agencies such as the Public Health Ministry, Education Ministry and military officers, the NRSA member said. He also suggested that the law also stipulate a penalty in case the committee gets involved in poll fraud.
