Non-partisan agency necessary to hold elections, says EC's Somchai

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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
Non-partisan agency necessary to hold elections, says EC's Somchai
Wiraj Sripong
The Nation


Somchai Srisuthiyakorn

BANGKOK: -- The charter drafters' so-called political neutrality came under doubt when they decided to place the responsibility of holding elections on the shoulders of appointed senior officials under the "election-organising committee". Election commissioner Somchai Srisuthiyakorn tells The Nation's Wiraj Sripong why it is necessary for members of independent bodies like the Election Commission to be non-partisan.

WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL BE THE IMPACT OF HAVING GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AS MEMBERS OF THE ELECTION-ORGANISING COMMITTEE?

The creation of this committee is quite problematic because it can come under the influence of politicians. The fact is whether we can be sure that bureaucrats will remain impartial and escape political influence.

Undeniably, in principle, bureaucrats should be non-partisan and work for the public interest. But in reality, the appointment of senior officials highly involves the consent of political parties.

For instance, local politicians often have a say in the appointment of senior police officers.

Appointing members of the election-organising committee becomes problematic because senior officials from different ministries will nominate these people, and their background will be difficult to verify. This just shows how politicians can influence the administration side.

Hence, the selection process should be more transparent and ensure that each member of this committee will really be impartial. Alternatively, I suggest that a list of three people be given to the election commissioners so they can examine each candidate's background. In addition, the general public should also have a say in the appointment of these people. Plus, each candidate should show their contributions to society and local communities in order to be eligible.

THERE HAS BEEN SOME CRITICISM CONCERNING THE EC'S IMPARTIALITY. HOW DO YOU PERCEIVE THE SITUATION?

I have to say the selection process at every step has been designed based on political context. Under the 1997 Constitution, the first group of commissioners resulted from public support toward the creation of a strong EC [to do away with corruption in the election process].

Later, politicians began understanding the EC's function and uncovered some weaknesses in the selection process, which resulted in most members of the selection committee being members of the ruling party. Furthermore, most of the elected senators were also affiliated to the party in power, which made it even easier for the government and politicians to interfere in the EC's work.

When given the option between a strong and moderate group of appointees, preference will be for the moderate ones.

The 2007 Constitution brought in some new elements that tried to do away with the influence of politicians by boosting the judicial branch's hand in the selection committee.

Now the question is, how non-partisan is the judicial branch?

The recent challenge over the last few years was that most of cases submitted to the EC dealt with the Pheu Thai Party, [which led the EC to be seen as having a negative attitude toward Pheu Thai].

HAVE ELECTIONS BECOME MORE TRANSPARENT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS?

The overall situation has improved compared to what happened in the past. However, there's room for improvement. Bribery still exists. The use of political influence to manipulate the appointment of government officials and in conducting populist policies are just some of the challenges that will need to be addressed.

The EC lacks the initiative to conduct fact-finding missions during an investigation, making it more difficult for the EC to have a complete overview of the case. In other words, the EC needs to be more proactive.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/Non-partisan-agency-necessary-to-hold-elections-sa-30258013.html


-- The Nation 2015-04-15

[tx22cb]

The Election Commission twerp advocating political neutrality is refreshing - therefore I trust that he will be resigning with immediate effect?

[Srikcir]

The EC has never been politically neutral. It's about time it was NEUTERED.

[In Town]

So says the MOST partisan commissioner in the history of Thailand. There is good reason to believe he is almost single-handedly responsible for the situation we are currently in, as he was unwilling to allow elections to determine the government if it was;t the government of his choice.