Dilemma For Thaksin As 111 Club Lines Up To Join Pheu Thai Party

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ANALYSIS

Dilemma for Thaksin as 111 Club lines up to join Pheu Thai Party

The Nation

To join, ex-PM would have to return to Kingdom, triggering arrest, disqualification from party membership

BANGKOK: -- With their five-year ban expiring at the end of this month, dozens of former Thai Rak Thai Party executives from the so-called 111 Club are lining up to be members of the ruling Pheu Thai party next week.

Pheu Thai spokesman Prom-pong Nopparit said some 40 politicians had already contacted Pheu Thai and its executives, expressing their wish to apply for membership on May 31.

More will do the same in the future, the spokesman claimed.

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"Pheu Thai is happy that the 111 Club members are willing to join with us in our political work. Their joining will certainly strengthen the party and help it to finish its term of four years," he said.

"We welcome all of them and are sure that there will be no conflict between Pheu Thai MPs and ministers," he added.

Responding to reports that fugitive ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra, founder of Thai Rak Thai, may want to apply for membership, Prompong said he was not aware of the reports but welcomed him anyway.

The club's members include Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan, Chaturon Chaisaeng, Pongthep Thepkanchana, Chidchai Wannasa-thit, Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, Bhokin Palakula, Warathep Ratana-korn, Adisorn Piangket, Virakarn Musikapong and Phumtham Wetchayachai.

Prime Minster Yingluck Shina-watra said yesterday there would be opportunities for members of the so-called 111 Club to join the government but ruled out a cabinet reshuffle in the near future.

The five-year ban on the former Thai Rak Thai Party executives of the club will end at the end of this month.

Speaking on her arrival in Bangkok after an official visit to Qatar and Bahrain, Yingluck said her government would not close the door for club members to join the government.

"They are capable and qualified persons who are more than welcome to join our work. However, [much] will depend on the timing," she said.

"Inviting them to work in the government will depend on their qualifications and certainly their wishes," she said.

When asked whether there would be a cabinet reshuffle to allow club members to join the government, Yingluck reiterated it depended on the timing.

Fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra will face an insurmountable dilemma if he applies for Pheu Thai Party membership - as a fugitive he has to apply in person for membership and risk being arrested. That, in turn, would automatically disqualify his membership.

As his five-year political ban is due to expire on May 30, speculation has spread that Thaksin is planning to become a full-fledged member of the ruling party.

Expiry of the ban means Thaksin is once again an eligible voter who can resume his political activities - but not necessarily as a party member.

Election Commission member Prapun Naigowit said under the political party laws, a fugitive like Thaksin can apply for party membership because he is not actually serving his two-year prison sentence.

Under relevant provisions, only an inmate or detainee held in a prison cell is barred from being a party member. Thaksin fled his imprisonment to live abroad.

Prapun said the catch for Thaksin was that a party member was obliged to lodge his party membership application in person.

If Thaksin turns up at the party headquarters, the authorities must arrest him in order to enforce his jail sentence. Should he be taken into custody, he would lose his party membership.

Legal pundits said in order to overcome the dilemma, the ruling party might have to amend its charter authorising the acceptance of membership applications abroad. But this might lead to litigation over Pheu Thai's compliance with the political parties law.

-- The Nation 2012-05-18

[GentlemanJim]

Expiry of the ban means Thaksin is once again an eligible voter who can resume his political activities - but not necessarily as a party member.

Election Commission member Prapun Naigowit said under the political party laws, a fugitive like Thaksin can apply for party membership because he is not actually serving his two-year prison sentence.

Under relevant provisions, only an inmate or detainee held in a prison cell is barred from being a party member. Thaksin fled his imprisonment to live abroad.

Prapun said the catch for Thaksin was that a party member was obliged to lodge his party membership application in person.

If Thaksin turns up at the party headquarters, the authorities must arrest him in order to enforce his jail sentence. Should he be taken into custody, he would lose his party membership.

Legal pundits said in order to overcome the dilemma, the ruling party might have to amend its charter authorising the acceptance of membership applications abroad. But this might lead to litigation over Pheu Thai's compliance with the political parties law.

A quite unbelievable situation, these guys may be morally bereft but you have to give it to them ..they have got some neck!

[JRinger]

Is this what it's all about?

Edited May 18, 2012 by JRinger

[LuckyLew]

Does it really matter if Thaksin officially registers as a PT member?

It is pretty clear who is running the party

[belg]

is there financial room for those people ? why were they not banned for life ? new deep pockets to find new owners soon... hope they don't fight and kill each other for the millions at stake

[hyperdimension]

Election Commission member Prapun Naigowit said under the political party laws, a fugitive like Thaksin can apply for party membership because he is not actually serving his two-year prison sentence.

Under relevant provisions, only an inmate or detainee held in a prison cell is barred from being a party member. Thaksin fled his imprisonment to live abroad.

So a fugitive from justice is allowed to apply for party membership, but someone in prison is forbidden.

[billd766]

Election Commission member Prapun Naigowit said under the political party laws, a fugitive like Thaksin can apply for party membership because he is not actually serving his two-year prison sentence.

Under relevant provisions, only an inmate or detainee held in a prison cell is barred from being a party member. Thaksin fled his imprisonment to live abroad.

So a fugitive from justice is allowed to apply for party membership, but someone in prison is forbidden.

As far as I understand it, yes.

However he has to be in the country and register in person as quoted in the OP.

Edited May 18, 2012 by billd766

[JohnAllan]

So, according to Thai political party law, and Thaksin's party membership qualifications notwithstanding - he does, after all, own PTP - as long as you are not actually an in-house guest of HMP, you could be a convicted serial killer and rapist, with a penchant for paedophilia . . . and still you would qualify for party membership. The mind boggles.

Or perhaps not . . .

Edited May 18, 2012 by JohnAllan

[JohnAllan]

Is Ruylling a place on the 'map'? Or has someone really stuffed up their spelling?

[OzMick]

I'm trying to think of a possible parallel to this situation. Closest I could get was if the Italians elected a PM whose brother was a mafia don, and who let his fugitive criminal brother set policy and select ministers from exile in Cyprus (?) Biggest difference is here they have a different version of kissing the boss' ring.

Probably too fantastic for the plot of a novel.

Edited May 18, 2012 by OzMick

[renaissanc]

The solution is easy. Thaksin arrives unannounced on his private jet. Someone goes onto his plane to register him. Then he leaves immediately on his private jet. The police, run by a relation, don't reach him in time to arrest him.

[allan michaud]

The big T is going to need a bigger trough for all these extra snouts, then again he is an expert in reshuffles. Seems TRT/PTP etc ministers never have long enough to get to grips with their positions before being shuffled off somewhere else. No wonder the economy seems to be heading for a cliff.

Should have been 5 years jail and a lifetime ban in my opinion, although its fair to say a lot of the 111 have never stopped working in politics anyway so the ban was pretty irrelevant.