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Published on January 21, 2008

Despite Saturday's declaration of a six-party coalition, political uncertainties continued yesterday following a reports that Chart Thai and the Matchima Thipataya parties face possible dissolution for alleged electoral offences by key members.

The Election Commission's panel tasked with investigating the parties' poll violation cases have reportedly found enough grounds to proceed against the two allies of the People Power Party, which on Saturday declared its formation of a coalition government.

The cases involved the parties' executives who are accused of committing serious electoral offences and who were given red cards, EC sources said yesterday.

If the EC approves the panel's findings, it will have to seek a Constitution Court decision on the fate of the parties.

"Whatever befalls the two parties will affect the PPP whose party deputy leader Yongyuth Tiyapairat is also under investigation for electoral fraud and faces being handed a red card,'' one source said.

Chart Thai deputy-secretary general Monthien Songpracha and Matchima Thipataya Party deputy leader Sunthorn Vilawan were given red cards. Under new electoral rules, a political party is accountable for electoral offences involving party executives.

Article 103 of the Constitution organic law on the election of MPs and senators stipulates that if there is incriminating evidence that party leaders or executives committed wilful neglect or did not stop electoral fraud, it will be regarded that the party was seeking power through undemocratic mean and had violated the Constitution.

In such a situation, the EC can ask the Constitution Court to disband a party and bans its leaders from politics for five years.

Under the law, party members of the dissolved parties must find new parties within 60 days.

The source said the panel will soon wrap up its report on the possibility of dissolving the parties.

"It will take at least three months to see if the two parties will be dissolved,'' the EC source said.

Chart Thai Party leader Banharn Silapa-archa reportedly became stressful after he was informed about the development.

To lessen damage to the party, he has come up with a back-up plan in case the party is dissolved by making Sanan Kachornprasart the leader of a new party.

Sanan will not get any Cabinet seat and holds only party advisor post in Chart Thai, thus getting immunity in the case the party was disbanded.

In the Cabinet allocation, a Chart Thai source said the party had decided to assign its secretary-general Prapat Photasuthon as Agriculture minister, deputy party leader Weerasak Kwosurat as Education minister and deputy secretary-general Warawuth Silapa-archa as Social Development and Human Security minister.

Also under the plan, Akapol Sorasuchart will be deputy Transport minister while Somsak Prissanananthakul will become deputy prime minister and not accept the deputy House Speaker post.

Banharn also has another back-up plan in case his son Warawuth does not receive a ministerial post as he only turns 35 on July 11. The minimum legal age for Cabinet members is 35.

In such a case, Banharn wants Somsak to take Social Development and Human Security and Prapat to serve as deputy PM and Jongchai Thiangtham becomes Agriculture minister.

EC member Sumeth Ubanisakorn said the EC has yet to receive the results of the examination by the panel.

At the same time, Chart Thai Party has received a lot of hate calls after it decided to join the People Power Party-led coalition, a high-ranking party source said yesterday.

He said non-stop phone calls criticising the party had prompted several Chart Thai members to discuss whether joining the coalition was worth all the complaints.

"We will have to obey every one of their orders because they are the biggest party," the source said of the People Power-led coalition.

"We don't know how long we can cope with the conditions because public sentiment is very strong.

"Many members of the public strongly criticised us, saying the party leader did not honour his words. We are under a great deal of pressure because we can't answer these charges."

The source said the allocation of Cabinet seats among the partners had not been completed.

"We have not received some of our demands but we expect it will be done soon. We believe our party leader Banharn Silapa-archa can handle this," the source said.

Meanwhile, People Power deputy leader General Ruangroj Mahasaranont said the defence minister post should go to a retired military officer who knows active military officers so that it would be easier for him to give orders and coordinate movements.

Ruangroj, a former supreme commander, was commenting on speculation that People Power leader Samak Sundaravej might become Defence minister concurrently with the prime ministership.

He said the issue would depend on the party's resolution but he was ready to become the Defence minister if asked.

People Power party-list MP Yongyuth Tiyapairat yesterday said the Defence minister post need not go to a former military officer.

"What matters most is the Defence minister needs to help the country move on and work well with the military," Yongyuth said.

Matchima Thipataya deputy leader Banyin Tangpakorn said his party would definitely vote for Samak as the next prime minister and he believed the Chart Thai and Puea Pandin parties would also vote in support of Samak's nomination.

The Nation