Govt 'has authority' to push for election
The Sunday Nation

BANGKOK: -- The caretaker government has full authority to push for an election and should do so with or without the blessing of the Election Commission, says the Assembly for the Defence of Democracy (AFDD).

The assembly, comprised of law lecturers, academics and activists, said elections were the only constitutional path out of the prolonged political conflict.

In a forum on solutions for the crisis held at Thammasat University's Rangsit Campus yesterday, Worajet Pakeerat said Article 195 of the charter states that only a Cabinet minister has the authority to submit a request for a Royal Decree for a new poll, and not the Election Commission.

Worajet suggested that acting Prime Minister Niwattumrong Boonsongpaisan continue pushing for a fresh election even if it ends up being nullified again by the Constitutional Court due to obstruction by the anti-government People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC).

The academic also criticised the EC's desire that a clause be written into the Royal Decree to enable it to postpone the election, calling it an attempt to grab power and postpone polls indefinitely.

Worajet said the PDRC and its allies were like a pack of wolves surrounding the government, adding that the Kingdom had reached a dead-end because people did not want to stick to the law. He also said the selection of a new Senate speaker was illegitimate as the charter clearly states that the upper House cannot convene when there is no Parliament.

-- The Nation 2014-05-18

Sutep and the prdc have tried all angles to hijack demroracy!

They have be told they have no legal basis to pursue the appointment of a interim PM.

Sutep himself knows now the end is near hence his last desperate final push for the 25tn may.

The elections should now go ahead and let the people decide.

It's a bitter pill for the yellows to swallow because yet another landslide victory is on it's way for the PTP and one of the main reasons for that is that they have been so focused on the peoples medium and the mad monk that abhisit has once again been sidelined.

He should instead been on the front foot laying out positive policies and at least been seen to be a politician instead of letting sutep derail the dems hopes of at least having some chance of winning over the people!

Nice to hear....

Sutep and the prdc have tried all angles to hijack demroracy!

They have be told they have no legal basis to pursue the appointment of a interim PM.

Sutep himself knows now the end is near hence his last desperate final push for the 25tn may.

The elections should now go ahead and let the people decide.

It's a bitter pill for the yellows to swallow because yet another landslide victory is on it's way for the PTP and one of the main reasons for that is that they have been so focused on the peoples medium and the mad monk that abhisit has once again been sidelined.

He should instead been on the front foot laying out positive policies and at least been seen to be a politician instead of letting sutep derail the dems hopes of at least having some chance of winning over the people!

And what have been the success stories of the PTP administration over the past three years?

I think they will be voted back in but will be heavily dependent on the good will of other parties to form a majority. Lets just hope those other parties don't jump ship eh!

the EC are involved with politics when they should be neutral and do their job - organise elections!

nice to see a decent piece from this newspaper - a rarity!

Both sides appear to be making it up as they go along.

Thailand never had, does not have and never will have Democracy.

Thais do not know what Democracy means.

Even if Thais had a transparent, not rigged, Internationally supervised elections there will be no Democracy in Thailand.

Thai people are not ready for Democracy. (I am not talking here of individuals)

Democracy means:

- Law and Order Enforcement for everyone;

- Every vote counts;

- People understand their rights and responsibilities;

- Corruption does not exist or is fought against on every level;

- All Administration and Power structures are appointed and operating with transparency strictly on merit basis;

- Every Citizen is getting equal and the best possible Education with similar sets of values.

Thai Society is entrenched in and based on the opposites to above for Millennia.

Changing shirt colour does not change anything.

Paralyzing BKK traffic does not change anything.

Having yet another election does not change anything.

Shooting at each other does not change anything.

Another Military Coup does not change anything.

Sorry to spoil your mood on a beautiful Sunday morning. Have a-cuppa...

Edited May 18, 201412 yr by ABCer

I feel another 102 coming on!

I feel another 102 coming on!

I am afffraid you are tttoo optttimmistic.

Nitirat, remember them? This is Nitirat 2.0. Perhaps they think plugging in the word democracy or double dd initials will broaden their appeal. Actually, it's same old, same old.

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Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

and what do those that have been "appointed" by the Yellows/Dems and Ammart do?

Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

and what do those that have been "appointed" by the Yellows/Dems and Ammart do?

Defend the interests of the nation, not a criminal on the run.

<snip>

The elections should now go ahead and let the people decide.

It's a bitter pill for the yellows to swallow because yet another landslide victory is on it's way for the PTP and one of the main reasons for that is that they have been so focused on the peoples medium and the mad monk that abhisit has once again been sidelined.

<snip>

And if elections are held now, and if the PTP regain power, we will be back in this exact same situitation in another 2-3 years. So how exactly does that benefit Thailand or it's people?

The PTP will never enact meaningful reforms, and you know it. They will simply continue to gut the system, install their own puppets into places of power and bring Thaksin back a free man.

Thaksin and the PTP must really be licking their chops at the thought of getting stuck into that 2.2 TRILLION baht infrastructure money. You know, that ever so necessary high speed train project.

Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

and what do those that have been "appointed" by the Yellows/Dems and Ammart do?

Defend the interests of the nation, not a criminal on the run.

you jest...

Whats with this Government anyway ?

We have 26 caretaker cabinet ministers some of whom if not all who have been appointed to the job for services rendered to one political party or another.

Most of those 26 we never hear of or from.

How many of then have been democratically elected to the job of MP's in the PT administration, including the coalition partners, that is actually faced a constituency in a general election ?

I know that at least one is a come back from being banned from politics for 5 years for election fraud and was appointed in one of the 6 cabinet reshuffles.

In reality they have all been appointed even if they were at one time MP's, and who has appointed them ?

Could it be the one who we heard of that groups and individuals were flying of to see to lobby for a cabinet post ?

For sure it is.

So what we have is a group of appointees who were appointed to the job they previously held (cabinet ministers and deputies) by the a convicted criminal on the run who has a 2 year jail sentence and multiple criminal charges awaiting him if he ever comes back to the country.

Is this a Government or is it a coup by appointment ?

one small detail they have conveniently left out as usual PTP style - there are currently no cabinet ministers or PM

Why is this Thai guy all of sudden speaking out so definitely that they "have authority? Was he under some rock all this time?

Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

and what do those that have been "appointed" by the Yellows/Dems and Ammart do?

Defend the interests of the nation, not a criminal on the run.

you jest...

Yeah he JEST means it.

There is a government state called Absolute Democracy that is also called "Rule By The Mob". If poor voters have absolute power by referendum they will vote to take all the money away from rich people. Duh. But if there is too much conservatism things will never improve or change. It is a balance all democratic cultures have failed in achieving, since Rome.

I think after all the dust settles, after all the lies are unspun, that the Thais may actually surprise us. They could find a way to balance conservatism and liberalism.

It is my hope. I really love these gentle people (more are gentle than not, and much more gentle than Americans). I love Thais. I do not understand them, but I love them.

Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

Everyone has their price....principles are sadly lacking, especially among the rich.

Yes....let the people vote for who they want, even if it ruins the economy. An who gets ruined the most? The poor and disenfranchised. Then one would hope the poor voters wake up in the next 20 or 30 years to see just what has happened. Maybe they will vote more wisely next time.

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Thailand never had, does not have and never will have Democracy.

Thais do not know what Democracy means.

Even if Thais had a transparent, not rigged, Internationally supervised elections there will be no Democracy in Thailand.

Thai people are not ready for Democracy. (I am not talking here of individuals)

Democracy means:

- Law and Order Enforcement for everyone;

- Every vote counts;

- People understand their rights and responsibilities;

- Corruption does not exist or is fought against on every level;

- All Administration and Power structures are appointed and operating with transparency strictly on merit basis;

- Every Citizen is getting equal and the best possible Education with similar sets of values.

Thai Society is entrenched in and based on the opposites to above for Millennia.

Changing shirt colour does not change anything.

Paralyzing BKK traffic does not change anything.

Having yet another election does not change anything.

Shooting at each other does not change anything.

Another Military Coup does not change anything.

Sorry to spoil your mood on a beautiful Sunday morning. Have a-cuppa... alt=coffee1.gif width=32 height=24>

Most of us know all that , but we enjoy a load of laughs , something you don't get in a democratic run country.

Whats with this Government anyway ?

We have 26 caretaker cabinet ministers some of whom if not all who have been appointed to the job for services rendered to one political party or another.

Most of those 26 we never hear of or from.

How many of then have been democratically elected to the job of MP's in the PT administration, including the coalition partners, that is actually faced a constituency in a general election ?

I know that at least one is a come back from being banned from politics for 5 years for election fraud and was appointed in one of the 6 cabinet reshuffles.

In reality they have all been appointed even if they were at one time MP's, and who has appointed them ?

Could it be the one who we heard of that groups and individuals were flying of to see to lobby for a cabinet post ?

For sure it is.

So what we have is a group of appointees who were appointed to the job they previously held (cabinet ministers and deputies) by the a convicted criminal on the run who has a 2 year jail sentence and multiple criminal charges awaiting him if he ever comes back to the country.

Is this a Government or is it a coup by appointment ?

So what, no system is perfect? The most important thing is that people will be able to decide for themselves.

Look at the so-called Greatest Nation on Earth, which represents itself as a beacon of democracy for the rest of the world, which is a complete farce when you see how the lobby groups operate there by greasing palms and with a president that is answerable to a handful of banker puppet masters.

It's all about jockeying for power.

The legitimate opposition and Suthep do not want any election they will lose. Further, the "reforms" are all about redistricting the country so they win elections. It has nothing to do with corruption -- both sides benefit a lot from that -- nonetheless, they will make it their battle cry while redistricting is the goal. If there are continued general elections, they will never again hold power. They need to carve the country up into pieces that make easy wins for the their minority.

Wah! Wah!

Well, getting back to the OP; it just seems to me that Thaksin's toadies are ratcheting up their rhetoric as their days in power dwindle to a precious few.

It's a pity they can't see the writing on the wall, and join the discussions to make a better country.

Thos posters advocating the election of senators should pause to think after it was revealed some flew to meet Thaksin in Singapore.

Senators are supposed to be neutral, a check and balance on governmental power.

So what do some do? Fly to seek advice from their master.

Disgusting.

and what do those that have been "appointed" by the Yellows/Dems and Ammart do?

Defend the interests of the nation, not a criminal on the run.

you jest...

Yeah he JEST means it.

You and Siripon should form a comedy act, your both far to funny for TV.

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the Kingdom had reached a dead-end because people did not want to stick to the law.

there was a typo, should be:
the Kingdom had reached a dead-end because the government did not want to stick to the law.

Perhaps they don't particularly like the PT government for various reasons and they would not be the only ones but the EC commissioners have two particular concerns:

1. They could be charged with malfeasance for wasting taxpayers' money, if they organised another election that ended up being annulled. This could also be a civil case for damages that could bankrupt them.

2. They are concerned about legal ramifications of being involved in submitting a royal decree, if it were to turn out that an acting PM had no authority to countersign one.

These seem to be rather prudent concerns, given that Thai politics has become more litigious than the US medical profession but professional indemnity insurance is not yet available to the same extent.

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