Election Commission must come clean, now rather than later

[webfact]

Election Commission must come clean, now rather than later 

By The Nation

 

 

Agency has a duty to clear up confusion over a string of discrepancies and irregularities before political turmoil ensues

 

The Election Commission (EC) must urgently clarify both the results and the formula used to calculate seats won in the March 24 poll, if it is to quell mounting public concern over its credibility. 

 

Pro-democracy activists and students are gauging the high level of that concern by collecting signatures in large numbers on petitions calling for election commissioners to be impeached over irregularities and discrepancies in voting numbers released.

 

With 90 per cent of the count completed, the EC declared on election day that 65.96 per cent had exercised their voting rights. Four days later, after the remaining votes had been tallied, the figure shot up by over 8 per cent to 74.69. Eyebrows were raised too. Observers asked how 10 per cent of the votes could make an 8.73-per-cent difference to the turnout. 

 

The turnout should never become entangled with the vote tally since it is supposed to be known almost immediately after the election. Spent ballot cards show the number of eligible voters who exercised their right, thus revealing the turnout. 

 

Soon after polling booths closed on March 24, the EC declared that 33,775,230 people had voted. On March 28, the EC increased that figure to 38,268,375. Observers were again left scratching their heads: How could almost 4.5 million new ballots appear in four days?

 

Another unexplained discrepancy emerged between the total number of voters (38,268,375) and the number of spent ballot cards (38,268,366). The numbers are supposed to be the same since each voter had one ballot card.

 

Confusion among the public and political parties rose even higher with the EC’s failure to clarify how many party-list MPs had been voted in.

Media and parties made their own calculations, using the formula mentioned in the Constitution and election law, but got different results according to their interpretation.

 

One interpretation gives one seat each to several small parties, while the other allocates seats to bigger parties. 

 

The EC has so far failed to clarify the legitimate method to calculate the number of seats won.

 

This is crucial since it affects the neck-and-neck race between the pro- and anti-junta camps to form the next government.

 

Using the calculation that would hand almost a dozen lower house 

 

seats to small parties would likely favour the pro-junta camp, who could almost certainly count on the loyalty of the political minnows.

 

The lack of clarity in these matters is not only tarnishing the EC’s credibility, but also threatens to jeopardise the whole election unless the commissioners take urgent remedial action.

 

Hundreds of thousands have signed petitions to impeach the EC. The commissioners won’t be easily deposed, but the move against them could create a legitimacy deficit for both the election and the resulting new government.

 

The opaque process also spurs the kind of uncertainty that political factions will use to create chaos for their own benefit. The EC has more than a month before the May 9 deadline to announce the final results. It cannot afford to wait that long amid an atmosphere that is growing more damaging by the day.

 

There are plenty of complaints to address and resolve, but the election commissioners have the experience and resources to do so. Yellow, orange and red cards can be issued for irregularities, and elections can be held again in affected constituencies. But first, the urgent priority is for the EC to stem the growing damage to its own credibility by giving voters a transparent explanation of the various discrepancies and irregularities reported so far. Time is ticking and the election’s legitimacy is at stake.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30367034

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-04-03

[Samui Bodoh]

"...Agency has a duty to clear up confusion over a string of discrepancies and irregularities before political turmoil ensues..."

 

"...Before political turmoil ensues..."

 

Political turmoil has already ensued; hundreds of thousands of people have already signed petitions demanding the dissolution of the EC. Many, many political observers have already stated that the election does not seem to meet international standards. Many people already believe that it was not on the level. Etc. Etc. Etc.

 

The purpose of elections is to allow the citizens of a country choose their leadership and general goals for the term of the legislature. When the process of choosing those representatives is not seen as being 'Free and Fair', then an election only provides for societal discord.

 

Can this election be salvaged? I do not know; that is a question for the Thai people. That said, it certainly does not appear to meet international standards for fairness and transparency.

 

When a society does not think an election process was fair, bad things happen.

 

 

Edited April 2, 2019 by Samui Bodoh

[Artisi]

It seems getting all the ducks in line for the required outcome is taking more time than initially planned due to the many slip-ups introduced in manipulating the result. But it's ok, they built in plenty of time to allow for all eventualities. 

[rkidlad]

Are some posters on here beginning to connect the dots yet? 

[Lungstib]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Election Commission must come clean,

I afraid that 'must' has been inserted by an overenthusiastic writer. We have seen in the past and suspect in the future that the officials who created this scenario and who have had absolute power over the citizens do not feel they 'must' do whats right, just what advances their cause.

[JAG]

37 minutes ago, rkidlad said:

Are some posters on here beginning to connect the dots yet? 

Yes, the constituency seat results, which are essentially more difficult to "fix" mean that notwithstanding the fact that they gained fewer seats, the junta party, with the senates input, are going to form the government. The thorny problem of ensuring that Prayut has a majority in parliament will  be resolved by some "constructive formula" for allocating the seats from the party lists.

 

In simplest of terms, the electorate failed to select the government desired by the establishment, in all it's forms. The EC will put that right.

Edited April 2, 2019 by JAG

[Puchaiyank]

the election does not seem to meet international standards. 

 

I fear elections officials were not too concerned with international standards...pleasing the Alpha male and his entourage would be most important...????

[Eric Loh]

48 minutes ago, rkidlad said:

Are some posters on here beginning to connect the dots yet? 

No say the ‘but but Thaksin’ brigade, 

[Hayduke]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Election Commission must come clean...

 

Why?

 

No one associated with this Junta has ever 'come clean' about anything. They lie to cheat, they lie to steal, they lie to avoid responsibility, and they lie to promote their self-serving, corrupt agenda. And...sometimes they lie because they don't know how to do anything else.

 

Hypocrisy and deceit are defining characteristics of this so-called government.

 

Why would they stop now?

 

 

Edited April 3, 2019 by Hayduke

[Zack61]

As transparent as a bucket of mud buried under a mountain of bulls**t. Won’t be any clearer than that. 

[Srikcir]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

The Election Commission (EC) must urgently clarify both the results and the formula used to calculate seats won in the March 24 poll, if it is to quell mounting public concern over its credibility. 

The EC "have yet to agree on a particular method of calculation" ... "At least two formulas, based on different interpretations of the law, are being advanced." 

https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1093113-ec-to-%E2%80%98decide-on-mp-formula-soon%E2%80%99/?utm_source=newsletter-20190403-0611&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news

No formula has been used yet!

Establishing the method of calculation after the election gives at best the perception that the junta-appointed commissioners are attempting to force the outcome to a preconceived result.

It's a little late going to the junta-appointed EX-charter drafters and junta-appointed NLA for advice on how they all thought the count should be made.

The only thing missing now is any contact by the EC with Prayut as Chief of NCPO for advice on how to count the elections results. Yet in the immediate past, such contact between the EC and Prayut on election matters has regularly happened.

[robblok]

They are bunch of idiots and should lay bare all the data so people can check it that is the only way to take away doubts that are there. Incompetence rules as usual (or worse fraud)

[PatOngo]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Election Commission must come clean, now rather than later 

There's more chance of polluted street food becoming clean than these clowns ever will!

[jayboy]

Can anyone think of a country where an election is held without a clear understanding on the part of the authorities how votes will be converted into parliamentary representatives?

 

Even on the part of the naive and the gullible, this whole thing is beginning to stink.

[sandrabbit]

20 minutes ago, jayboy said:

Can anyone think of a country where an election is held without a clear understanding on the part of the authorities how votes will be converted into parliamentary representatives?

 

Even on the part of the naive and the gullible, this whole thing is beginning to stink.

Venezeula ?

[mikebell]

I thought they knew the result a week before the election?

[MaxLee]

2 hours ago, Srikcir said:

No formula has been used yet!

 

Yes,.... the Article number "not-to-be-named" formula

[Bundooman]

14 hours ago, rkidlad said:

Are some posters on here beginning to connect the dots yet? 

As apposed to yourself Sir, who is obviously the only person who can see the whole picture..... but feels the need to patronise those of us who post 'on here'? 

 

Knew it all along, did you Sir?

[rkidlad]

3 minutes ago, Bundooman said:

As apposed to yourself Sir, who is obviously the only person who can see the whole picture..... but feels the need to patronise those of us who post 'on here'? 

 

Knew it all along, did you Sir?

I’m referring to a very small number of posters ‘on here’ who are being obtuse, or who have been defending this election and the EC. 

 

There are luckily many posters on here who ‘knew it all along’.