Don't be too confident of winning case, chief adviser tells party members
The Democrat Party's chief adviser, Chuan Leekpai, yesterday showed concern about the party dissolution case and told MPs not to be over-confident.
According to a source who asked not to be named, Chuan told the party meeting that MPs who are not |well-informed should not tell the public the party will certainly win |the party dissolution case related to the alleged illegal use of money.
The Election Commission's 5-0 resolution to propose the party's dissolution over the alleged illegal use of a Bt29-million political party development fund was unusual, he said. But in the meantime, the case relating to a donation from TPI Polene is in the hands of the Department of Special Investigation.
Chuan, a member of the party's legal team in charge of the case, told all concerned people to study the EC's regulations, the source said.
The Democrat Party's dissolution case verdict is expected to come after the House dissolution, a party legal expert said yesterday.
Another team member and Phatthalung MP, Nipit Intarasombat, said the party was confident of its innocence. But it should not underestimate the danger.
"I accept that we are worried about the time limit, as the deadline for counter-argument submission is on May 13. We are worried whether we will be able to submit it in time," Nipit said.
The party needs some time to gather evidence of what happened back in 2005, he said.
Nipit refused to comment on whether Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's announcement to have an election on November 14 would impact on the party dissolution case, saying he had not thought about the point.
The party dissolution case might take seven to eight months, judging by Constitution Court trials in the past.
Reacting to the possibility that during an election campaign, political opponents might claim electors should not vote for a party that might be dissolved, Nipit said "Until the court comes out with its verdict, our party must not be considered dissolved."
Nakhon Nayok MP Charchai Issasenarak, the party's deputy secretary-general, declared that the Democrat Party had no malicious intent - but it might have been in violation of the EC when the Bt29 million in funds was paid to subsidise the party's campaign billboards in the 2005 general election.
"It is unbelievable that the oldest political party may be punished by dissolution because it unintentionally made smaller-than-specified billboards which were, in fact, harder for voters to see," he said.
In the party dissolution case under the Constitution Court's review, the EC contends the main coalition party violated its financial rules relating to campaign billboards.
Under the rules, billboards paid by political party subsidies must have a specified size of 2.40 metres by 1.4 metres.