Charter court orders scrutiny of 32 MPs

[snoop1130]

Charter court orders scrutiny of 32 MPs

By THE NATION

 

 

Judges allow them to function as lawmakers, saying media shareholding case against them different from that of suspended thanathorn

 

THE CONSTITUTIONAL Court yesterday agreed to accept a petition against 32 MPs from the military-aligned bloc over their alleged shareholdings in a media company, but allowed them to continue their parliamentary duties in an order that differed from that imposed on anti-junta politician Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit.

 

The court reasoned that the 32 MPs should not be suspended because it was still unclear if the businesses in which they had invested could in fact be considered media. 

 

The court said this case was different from that of Thanathorn, in whose case the junta-appointed Election Commission had already conducted an initial investigation to confirm wrongdoing before the case was forwarded to the court. 

 

There was also evidence to suspect that the suspended MP may have breached the law, the court said, explaining its decision to suspend Thanathorn from his MP duties.

 

There was no committee investigating the 32 new cases before they were submitted to the court, the judges said, adding since the matter was still unclear, the MPs should not be suspended from their parliamentary duties.

 

Nine other MPs who had also been subject to complaints for possibly breaching the Constitution by holding media shares were spared in yesterday’s decision. The court turned down the petition to scrutinise them.

 

The court said its examination of the documents presented by the plaintiff showed that the companies in which these nine MPs had invested did not have an objective to run a newspaper or any type of media business.

 

These MPs were Satra Sripan, Surasak Chingnawan, Prim Pooncharoen, Parina Kraikrupt, Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, and Chakraphan Phornnimit from Phalang Pracharat Party. The remaining three were Democrat MPs Korn Chatikavanij, Pramuan Pongthawaradej and Akradet Wongpitakrot.

 

The 41 MPs, like Thanathorn, had been accused of holding shares in media companies. The petition had been filed by Future Forward MPs through the parliamentary mechanism and submitted to the Constitutional Court with endorsement by House Speaker Chuan Leekpai.

 

The 2017 Constitution prohibits shareholdings in media companies for MPs and MP candidates. Violation of the rule is punishable with disqualification of the MP, imprisonment and fine, as well as a 20-year ban from politics.

 

Prior to the court’s decision yesterday, there was lot of public interest in the cases. 

 

Many had been waiting to see if the junta-aligned MPs would be suspended, following the same standards as those Thanathorn was subjected to earlier. Others had appeared concerned that additional problems would ensue if a such a big number of MPs were suspended from Parliament.

 

The court’s decision to allow the embattled MPs to continue their work in the lower house favours the pro-junta bloc, which has only a slim majority over its rival bloc.

 

In a move that further helped fortify the pro-junta bloc’s power in Parliament, the lower house yesterday declined a motion to scrutinise the selection of senators.

 

Second deputy speaker Supachai Phosu from Bhumjaithai Party refused the motion to scrutinise the selection, telling the House that the National Council for Peace and Order had responsibility for the Senate process. It was beyond the House’s power to scrutinise the selection, Supachai said.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/politics/30371831

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-06-27

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[taichiplanet]

F.A.R.C.E - Frign' Around Reasonable Constitutional Ethics

Edited June 27, 2019 by taichiplanet

[FarFlungFalang]

This is great news for Phrayut as he will have to wait for the inquiry to finish before he can select his cabinet and this inquiry might take years to complete in the meantime he will just have to continue with the current status quo.

[Eligius]

'Charter court orders scrutiny of 32 MPs'.

 

Translation: 'Court orders confirmatory scrutiny of the Constitutional right of all junta-linked MPs to be definitively declared free of any wrong-doing and to be proclaimed as perfect exemplars of political virtue - and allowed to take up their parliamentary powers unimpeded and unimpeached.'

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by Eligius

[sjaak327]

41 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

The court said this case was different from that of Thanathorn, in whose case the junta-appointed Election Commission had already conducted an initial investigation to confirm wrongdoing before the case was forwarded to the court. 

Hmm, yet nine have been cleared because apparently the companies involved were deemed not to be related to media. In that case, it is save to say the other 32 were indeed related to media companies, and therefore the court cannot do this, they should suspend the 32 for which it did accept the case, and stop coming up with an explanation that doesn't make any sense. 

 

As a matter of fact, there is grave doubt about the confirmed wrongdoing apparently investigated by the EC, as evidence has surfaced in which said shares have been proven to be sold before the deadline. Yet Thanathorn was suspended in record time, yet these 32 are allowed to continue even if the suspicion of wrongdoing is the exact same as Thanathorn.

 

It once again shows the incredible dishonesty and bias of the constitutional court. Most likely they have simply been given orders by government house. 

Edited June 27, 2019 by sjaak327

[SABloke]

45 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

The court said this case was different from that of Thanathorn,

Different indeed: Thanathorn was not a share holder of a media company but these MPs were.

 

I suspect this will turn out like when Prayuth wasn't a state official. They'll find that since Company A was actually renting bandwidth/radio waves/satelites it wasn't a media company but just a media user or some shit like that. Watch this space... 

[mike787]

yeah, whatever, and this will change anything in Thailand?   Right!!!

[ChipButty]

Why only 32?

[holy cow cm]

I can hear it now: White Wash. 

[Eligius]

Apparently, the lovely and law-abiding Phalang Pracharat Party have now submitted a list of a further 33 (mainly) Future Forward MPs who need to be investigated ...

Hissy-fit childishness - no, sorry, infantilism - is Thailand's middle name!

 

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by Eligius

[sjaak327]

3 hours ago, Eligius said:

Apparently, the lovely and law-abiding Phalang Pracharat Party have now submitted a list of a further 33 (mainly) Future Forward MPs who need to be investigated ...

Hissy-fit childishness - no, sorry, infantilism - is Thailand's middle name!

 

 

Nice, and those 33 will probably be suspended right after acceptance of the case. 

[unblocktheplanet]

There's only room for one gander: Prayuth. All the rest are window-dressing, a gaggle of (willingly) force-fed geese.