Komsan Podhikong, a law lecturer at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University and one of the 35 charter writers, is relieved now that the first draft of the 2007 Constitution is set for public hearing.

He believes the draft charter, the final version of which will be put to a national referendum in September, sets a precedent in terms of promoting "cleaner" politics and further empowering citizens in their political life.

"We devoted a new chapter to the code of conduct for public office holders. Another chapter was written specifically to prevent conflicts of public and private interests.

"To reduce the government's grip on power, we wrote another chapter to further empower citizens so that they become more and more like the players rather than just bystanders," said Komsan, also a former legal officer at the Council of State.

For instance, Sections 55, 138, 186, 161 and 282 of the proposed charter stipulate that the government has to consult citizens before making key national decisions, such as entering into international treaties. If deemed necessary, such consultation can take the form of a national referendum.

In addition, Section 167 stipulates that the prime minister's office is limited to a maximum of two terms, or eight years, so that the power of the highest office is not vested in one person for too long.

On ethics, Section 270 stipulates that public office holders are subject to a strict code of conduct and that violators will face punishment, including impeachment proceedings.

To prevent conflicts of interests, Section 260 requires that the premier, his cabinet and their spouses and underage children transfer their business shareholdings to trustees for professional management within 30 days of taking office.

Komsan, 41, who holds a master's degree in law from Chulalongkorn University, was also involved in the drafting of the 1997 charter as a legal specialist seconded by the Council of State.

"This new charter, which has a total of 299 sections, is about 15-per-cent thicker than its 1997 predecessor.

"When compared to the 1997 version, I think our parliament will be 20 per cent smaller because the numbers of constituency MPs, party-list MPs and senators are all reduced by 20 per cent.

"Based on the first draft, we will have 320 constituency MPs instead of 400, 80 party-list MPs instead of 100 and 160 senators instead of 200. In fact, I am opposed to the proposed appointment of senators as stipulated in the first draft. I think the senate is no longer necessary in our parliamentary system.

"On the party-list MP system, I prefer the German model, but we use only a part of it here. In fact, the allocation of House seats based primarily on the party-list system is quite objective. In the 2005 election, the Thai Rak Thai party got just 51 per cent of the party-list votes, but its total number of MPs amounted to 77 per cent, giving it an excessive power base in Parliament.

"Still, the 2007 charter will continue to promote a strong government, but the kind of strength will be different this time. More importantly, previous loopholes in the checks-and-balances mechanisms will be closed, with the judiciary playing a bigger role in counter-balancing executive power. The Supreme Court and Supreme Administrative Court, for instance, will take charge of nominating members of key independent bodies.

"The 2007 charter will continue to require MPs to belong to a political party for at least 90 days before a general election. In the case of snap polls, the requirement is reduced to 30 days prior to the polls," he said.

Previously there was only the 90-day lock, so MPs could not switch parties even when there was a snap election.

For Komsan, the 2007 charter, Thailand's 18th since becoming a constitutional monarchy more than seven decades ago, is unlikely to be the last in which his legal expertise will be sought.

Still, he would prefer to stick to his university lectureship rather than drafting laws after tanks roll onto the streets.

Nophakhun Limsamarnphun

nop1122@yahoo.com