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Published on April 25, 2008

He referred to the results of a recent reshuffle of officials in charge of administrative works and commented that quite a number of those who received promotions are either friends or relatives of members of the current government.

But the more meaningful changes are those that the government plans to carry out regarding the Constitution. The People Power Party plans to use the content of the 1997 charter as a guide for the constitution it plans to draft.

Lom Ploean Tis said that it is widely known that the now-defunct Thai Rak Thai Party built up its strong political base and was able to form a one-party government largely by exploiting the 1997 Constitution so that it could exercise absolute control.

Independent and watchdog agencies were compromised to the point they became "lame-duck" agencies. There were widespread corruption allegations in almost every project, leading to the September 2006 coup.

Let's see what will happen now that the People Power Party wants to bring back the 1997 Constitution.

Samart Keawmeechai, the secretary-general of the government whip, said that by April the government would propose the draft of its new charter to the House for approval. And before the House session on May 19, a subcommittee would be set up to interpret the law. The second and third readings are then set to be completed by September.

If everything goes as planned, the former Thai Rak Thai party would return to the political stage. It is a "coup through democratic means" by using "the majority vote in the House" instead of tanks, the Army and guns.

It is a certainty that Article 309 would have to be abolished to enable the defendants in the alleged corruption cases involving the previous government to fight the charges placed against them by the Assets Examination Committee and the National Counter Corruption Commission. Article 237 is expected to be amended so that political parties would not have to be responsible for electoral fraud committed by its executives.

Lom Ploean Tis summed up by saying, "It's a pity that Thailand has everything but politicians with genuinely democratic minds. So what we've got is a democracy through elections to transfer the power from the people to politicians. And then we let politicians do anything they wish, even to rewrite the whole charter without asking the people according to desirable democratic procedures".

Khao Sod's editorial article also referred to the charter amendments with the headline: "Don't fan the fire."

It said that while society is calling for unity, certain political groups and public movements are moving toward confrontation. It seems like they want to intensify conflicts and bring them to the boiling point. For instance, instead of debating whether the charter should be amended, those from both sides of the issue choose not to listen to the other side, but rather to push for their own agenda at any cost.

Although some academics are trying to propose alternatives, people in political parties or those with connections to the parties have shown from their attitudes that they are ready to confront their opponents.

These opposing sides do have the option of using the mechanisms of the House to push for what they want, but have shown that they do not believe that Parliament is the venue through which their problems will be solved. Instead, they have shown by their recent stances and attitude that there might be no alternative except for violence.

There were increasing calls for the government to find a solution for this conflict. The government has a duty and a responsibility, as well as the power, to do so; thus it has the power to dictate how the situation resolves itself. But at the same time, Thai society should think whether the current situation is desirable and whether it provides a way out for the majority of the people. If not, they have to ask themselves if there are any alternatives for the future, said Khao Sod.