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Last-ditch bid within NRC to derail charter draft
THE NATION



BANGKOK: -- WITH the likelihood that the National Reform Council (NRC) will vote to endorse the draft constitution on Sunday, some NRC members yesterday made a last-ditch attempt to convince their colleagues vote down the draft.

NRC member Boonlert Kachayudhadej said that if the charter draft was passed into law, political division would deepen and the country would be hit by a new round of crises.

Boonlert, speaking at a press conference, said that although the charter draft contained many useful points, major problems with the document could bring about negative repercussions for the country.

He said the country's two major political parties - Pheu Thai and the Democrats - the red shirts, academics and members of the media had all rejected the charter draft.

"This draft has been given all sorts of bad names, unbecoming to be the country's top law,'' he said.

Boonlert claimed that if the NRC accepted the charter, the decision would not be unanimous.

He believed the opinion of 21 NRC members who were members of the Constitution Drafting Committee would be the decisive indicator of whether the NRC would accept the charter or not.

However, NRC member Sira Jenjaka, a supporter of the draft, presented a different view. He said almost 200 out of the 247 NRC members would vote in support of the charter draft. Those planning to vote against the charter draft would be the minority, he said.

Boonlert said the result of the public referendum over the charter would deepen national division because members of the public might also take into account their likes and dislikes of the government and the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) in their decision.

NRC member Nimit Sittitrai said the NRC should vote down the draft charter to pave the way for it to be reviewed. "Passing the charter risks another constitutional and political crisis. I urge NRC members to exercise prudent judgement for the sake of the country,'' he said.

Another opponent of the draft, NRC member Seree Suwanpanont, said two major political groups, the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) and the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), were divided over whether to accept the charter draft. This indicated further political rifts in the country that might escalate into a political crisis.

"This charter draft will detonate a political conflict so the NRC must vote down the charter for the sake of the country,'' he said.

Seree said he believed in the integrity of the NRC members and he was confident they would exercise their own judgement without taking orders or being influenced by those in power.

He pointed out the imbalance of power as a major flaw in the charter. "Without a balance of the three branches of power, no matter how many elections are held, there would be a political conflict. Even though the NCPO tries to maintain its power, it would not be able to resolve the conflicts,'' he said.

Sira yesterday warned UDD secretary-general Nattawut Saikua, who is standing trial on charges of terrorism, not to campaign against the charter draft ahead of a public referendum if the NRC accepted the draft. He said if Nattawut did come out against the draft, he would be violating his bail criteria. He would file a petition with the court to have Nattawut's bail revoked.

Sira praised Suthep Thaugsuban and other former PDRC leaders for their support in the charter draft, thanking them for siding with the people and not the politicians who opposed the charter draft. "If he and the PDRC had not supported the charter draft, there would have been a question from people joining the street rallies with him and the PDRC asking if he abandoned the people to support the politicians,'' he said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/Last-ditch-bid-within-NRC-to-derail-charter-draft-30268016.html


-- The Nation 2015-09-03

[BSJ]

It appears a referendum is needed to ensure this stellar draft charter has some level of legitimacy with the people of Thailand....but I doubt the public will be hood- winked!

[aussieinthailand]

Sira thanked Suthep and other PDRC leaders for siding with the people,

Nice try, "The people" haven't decided anything yet, They haven't been given all the info, they have been banned from publicly talking about it,

Banned from criticizing it, banned from praising it, and banned from trying to persuade opinion's on it, so how can "the people" have sided with anyone???

[Srikcir]

"Without a balance of the three branches of power, no matter how many elections are held, there would be a political conflict. Even though the NCPO tries to maintain its power."

That means there are FOUR branches of power. And no matter how many elections are held, the military will always decide the balance of power .

As it stands the 2015 draft and all the previous constitutions are basically powerless in the protection of the Thai people's sovereignty. It's no small wonder that the 2015 draft eliminated the 2007 Constitution provision under Part 13, "Right to Protect the Constitution," Article 68.