Somehow, the Election Commission has failed to get the message - or simply pretended not to - and it is struggling to survive against all odds.

After the Constitution Court nullified the April 2 snap election, the EC, which arranged the "rushed" national ballot, can no longer claim legitimacy.

The method by which the snap poll was arranged raised numerous concerns about the EC's impartiality and lawsuits are piling up against it.

The only way out is for all the EC commissioners to quit. Yet the body seems to want to carry on as if nothing has happened.

The commissioners held a meeting with political parties on Monday - most of them small and virtually unknown - to set a new election date.

It did so to avoid its past mistake of only consulting the ruling party and setting the election date 37 days after the House of Parliament was dissolved.

To further salvage its credibility, the EC has asked the Supreme Court to help it supervise the new electoral process. This came after head judges from the Supreme, Administrative and Constitution courts urged the commissioners to resign to pave way for the appointment of a new set of commissioners.

The judges noted that the public appears to have lost confidence in the current Election Commissioners ability do their job impartially and appropriately, as outlined under the Constitution.

As expected, the main opposition parties boycotted the EC's meeting on Monday on the grounds that they could not work with officials who they say have lost all credibility.

Only the Thai Rak Thai and 18 tiny parties took part before coming up with the new election date of October 22.

This would automatically unlock the 90-day restriction that requires political candidates to be members of parties for 90 days before they are eligible to stand in an election.

Thaksin Shinawatra has welcomed the move and signalled that anybody who wants to switch parties is welcome to do so.

But the election date is not the big issue right now.

What the public want, is the resignation of the commissioners, headed by Vasana Puemlarp, so that a more credible EC is appointed to organise the election in a free and fair manner.

Charupat Ruangsuwan, one of commissioners, bowed on Monday to the pressure by submitting his resignation.

This has left the body with only three commissioners - out of five. They are Vasana, Prinya Nakchudtree and Weerachai Neawbunnien.

The fifth commissioner, Jaral Burana-pansri, died last year and he has yet to be replaced.

Charan Phakdi-thanakul, secretary-general of the Supreme Court, said yesterday all the commissioners should stand down.

This was the resolution of the top judges of the Supreme Court, the Supreme Administrative Court and the Constitution Court, who were of the view the EC had caused grave damage to the country through its handling of the April 2 election.

If the current commissioners are allowed to organise the next election, there was a possibility it would not be carried out in an orderly, honest and fair manner as stipulated by the Constitution, he said.

"The quicker the EC commissioners resign, the less damage the nation will face.

"If they don't make a decision or decide to delay it, the damage will spread out and in the future the EC will suffer from this damage too," Charan said.

Given this ultimatum from the judiciary, the way out for the EC is very clear.

The three remaining commissioners' resignations are only a matter of time.

Somroutai Sapsomboon

The Nation