But he looked dead serious when he made the public utterance hot on the heels of the members of the tribunal leaving the bench, following more than 10 hours of suspense and tension never before experienced in the country's history.

If indeed he meant what he said and will push ahead with restoring the political rights of these 111 politicians, then he will be treating the trial by the Constitution Tribunal as a charade geared to entertain the public and extract some bargains from former Thai Rak Thai leader Thaksin Shinawatra and his cronies.

Why did Sonthi feel that the 111-member executive committee should receive a pardon immediately? The general might have some strong reasons best known to himself. If he believes that these disgraced politicians need a break and deserve some mercy, the Army chief might have conveniently forgotten that the entire country has undergone a series of destabilising attempts by elements still loyal to the previous group of powers that be led by Thaksin.

The Constitution Tribunal took pains to explain and reason point-by-point the legal thorns in coming out with a verdict with proof beyond reasonable doubt. Not only was justice served on Wednesday night, it was seen to be served as well.

The tribunal made Thai Rak Thai's so-called legal experts and counsels look more like legal apprentices struggling to pass the bar exam. The verdict was clean-cut and crystal clear, even to the convoluted and tricky minds of legal twisters.

The verdict will also serve as a legal precedent and textbook for those aspiring to become lawyers or legal luminaries working for public good. It will also be a lesson for political scoundrels that they must be smarter and more crooked to fool judges with unassailable integrity and honesty.

Sonthi might have forgotten that it was the hands of the other 110 Thai Rak Thai executives that propped up Thaksin and gave him something like a blank cheque to do whatever he liked, including a number of practices now under intensive investigation for corruption, and other shenanigans - among many other allegations he is facing together with his cronies.

If Sonthi decides to go ahead with his proposed pardon for all 111 disgraced politicians, including Thaksin, he should pause first and ponder whether such a move is not tantamount to an insult to the Constitution Tribunal and the entire public.

Their actions or malpractice were part of the four reasons cited to justify the military coup on September 19 last year, in case Sonthi has forgotten due to prolonged worrying about his own future after retirement at the end of this coming September.

Maybe Sonthi has not been a victim of political arrogance and abusive acts, because he was in the Army with some clout. But the public has had too much of abuse of power and had to take to the streets for several months last year to oust Thaksin, failing to do so until the coup happened.

What's more, Sonthi's worries about the fate and future of these 111 politicians seems unwarranted, because some of the vocal recipients of the verdict have yet to show any degree of repentance. Most remain insolent and show neither regard nor respect for the verdict.

The top echelon of Thai Rak Thai even scoffed at the entire trial as an exercise of dictatorial power. Not only did they refuse to show any remorse, hard-core committee members hissed vindictive remarks and made it clear that they intended to settle scores when their day comes.

Sonthi is extending his own hand to some of the 111 hands, which either formed clenched fists or held back in a vengeful stance. On the other hand, the Army chief sees that some of the headache he suffers to this day is from freak actions by elements loyal to Thaksin.

There has been word over the weekend that Thaksin is formally applying to British authorities for political asylum, now that his power base is being chipped away through the lengthy suspension of political rights and any kind of political activity.

That means he and his family members are staying away from the long arm of Thai law that wants him to respond to various charges related to high crimes of corruption and other financial shenanigans, including tax-dodging, abuse of power and plain cheating - of which an American businessman was a victim.

Sonthi needs to reconsider and allow the effects of the verdict to sink into the minds of these unrepentant and hard-core members of Thai Rak Thai. Even if their remorse is soon forthcoming, it can never be heartily welcomed.

A coup leader must never be seen as a nice guy with a heart full of benevolence. If he needs any reminder at all, he should know that the four-point agenda of the coup-makers has yet to be accomplished.

Sopon Onkgara