NLA receives MP selection bill, creates committee to study it

By The Nation

 

The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) on Thursday approved in principle its first reading of the organic bill that would regulate the Lower House. The MPs selection bill would accompany the new Constitution and was one of four legislative bills that must be passed prior to holding a national election.

The bill in principle sailed through the chamber with 189 votes to zero, with five abstentions and two no-votes.

 

Under the Constitution, the NLA has 60 days to deliberate the draft bill through to a third-reading conclusion after being forwarded it by the Constitution Drafting Commission (CDC).

 

CDC chairman Meechai Ruchupan on Thursday presented the bill to the NLA on behalf of the CDC.

 

He stressed that the bill had been revised in line with suggestions made by members of the public, the Election Commission (EC), and the NLA, to ensure free and fair elections.

 

The new organic bill includes several strict rules. Eligible citizens who failed to vote would be punished by being denied the right to run in elections for parliament, the Senate or even for local government for two years, Meechai noted.

 

As well, every vote would truly matter under the new organic law, he said. Even a voter’s choice to not vote for any of the candidates would count, he said. If the no-votes won in any constituency, a by-election would be held and those candidates who had lost would be banned from running for the second round, Meechai said.

 

MP candidates were also required under the bill to present records of past tax payments when applying to run for election, he said.

 

Meechai said that the CDC had also empowered the EC to be more proactive. They now had the authority to reschedule an election if any irregularities were found.

 

Meechai emphasised that those found guilty in corruption cases would not be qualified to run in an election.

 

After the first reading on Thursday, a committee of 33 members was appointed to vet the proposed legislation.

 

Brief summary of the MP selection bill

 

- The Lower House has 500 members – 350 from constituencies and 150 from the party lists.

 

- The election is run with the Mixed-Member Apportionment system, using a single ballot to determine results in both the constituency and national levels.

 

- The bill opens the way for non-traditional voting, allowing means of polling other than using the actual ballot.

 

- Parties wishing to contest for the premier post would submit a list of up to three PM candidates to the Election Commission during the MP application period.

 

- MP candidates are required to submit three years of tax payment records.

 

- If MPs were later found to be unqualified, they would risk losing political rights.

 

- The election campaign period is doubled from the previous 90 days to 180 days, with limitations on campaign budgets prescribed for the EC to deal with political parties.

 

- The result of the election can be announced when at least 95 per cent of the polling is complete and within 60 days in order to use it to find the number of the party-list MPs.

 

- The EC has the authority to reschedule an election to ensure fairness.

 

Election fraud

 

- Those involved in election fraud, would be banned for up to one year and a by-election would be called.

 

- If parties are involved in election fraud, punishment could include party dissolution.

 

- If election fraud is found after the result has already been announced, then the Courts will have authority to decide a by-election and cancel membership of the troubled MPs.

 

- The culprit of the fraud would be responsible for any expenses for holding a new election.

 

- Politicians guilty of election fraud could be banned between five to 20 years.

 

- A challenge to declared election results could be made within 30 days.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/politics/30332942

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-12-01

"Election fraud"

 

Well, the election fraud is a fact as soon as an election is held due to the fact that the whole system is now rigged so that the old elite will retain power no matter the will of the people.

8 hours ago, webfact said:

The bill opens the way for non-traditional voting, allowing means of polling other than using the actual ballot.

Like to hear more details on "non-traditional" voting.

 

8 hours ago, webfact said:

The EC has the authority to reschedule an election to ensure fairness.

EC had this authority under the 2007 Constitution with concurrence of the government. So does the law now allow "sole" authority?

 

Note that when 10% of voters were blocked by the PDRC and Democrats from voting at the polling stations in the February 2014 national election, the government and EC agreed to a followup election in June(?) 2014 for those 10% voters. As soon as it was announced, the Constitutional Court invalidated all the February 2014 votes with the logic that there can be only one election day. Before the entire election could be repeated, there was a military coup in May 2014.

 

However, early voting was allowed prior to the February 2014 national election and the Constitution allowed additional election days beyond the official national election date as required by special conditions. The Constitutional Court ruling appeared to have been politicized. There's no reason to think that the new organic laws and 2017 Constitution will prevail in the Constitutional Court in the next election.

8 hours ago, webfact said:

MP candidates are required to submit three years of tax payment records.

Not tax payment "receipts" but "records." A vastly broad requirement that can mean anything from proof of payment for taxes to entire work papers from which taxable income is determined. If interpretation is left to the EC with no further standardization, it would be in a position to set arbitrary and capricious requirements on a case-by-case basis. That invites corruption!

8 hours ago, webfact said:

If MPs were later found to be unqualified, they would risk losing political rights.

Only "risk?" So if found to be unqualified, they might not lose political rights? Will be there negotiations remain in elected office? That seems to invite corruption! And what are "political rights?"