The Pheu Thai Party on Sunday warned that Bhumjaithai’s charter amendment draft lacks public participation, while suggesting its version should be used as the main draft for deliberation.
Three drafts sponsored by Pheu Thai, Bhumjaithai and the People’s Party (PP) are scheduled for their first reading in parliament on Tuesday and Wednesday. Each offers a different approach as to how a constitution drafting assembly (CDA) should be created.
Chanin Rungthanakiat, Pheu Thai’s deputy spokesman, said the party stands ready to vote for all three drafts to initiate a process for creating the CDA to draft a new charter.
However, he expressed concerns about Bhumjaithai’s proposal, saying its lack of a direct line to public opinion would see CDA members selected entirely by parliament without going through any public screening first.
He said a CDA formed without public scrutiny or even indirect participation from voters could lead to potential collusion, resulting in a drafting body filled with members lacking proper qualifications.
The PP’s version, meanwhile, faces the possibility of being challenged in the Constitutional Court, he said. The PP’s proposed advisory council is directly elected by voters, which could be seen as against the court ruling that prohibits direct election.
“If the PP’s charter proposal is submitted to the court for a ruling, the charter amendment process could be delayed”, he said.
Instead, Mr Chanin said, Pheu Thai has proposed a 151-member CDA that combines public and parliamentary selection: 100 members indirectly elected through a two-stage process involving both the public and parliament, and the 51 others appointed by parliament.
He said the party believes its mixed model strikes a balance between public representation and constitutional compliance while minimising risk of judicial intervention.
Pheu Thai will propose that, should all three drafts pass the first reading, its version should be adopted as the main one for further examination, he said.
“Given the restriction imposed by the court, our draft is the most feasible and inclusive. It prevents collusion and ensures no single group can dominate the drafting process,” Mr Chanin said.
He added that if the political agreement between Bhumjaithai and the PP still holds, the charter rewrite bid is expected to receive support from the Senate to kickstart the process.