According to a source, Pathum Thani is the site of a turf war being waged secretly by powerful figures in the country.
The political alignments involving the main players in the coalition and opposition camps provide an insight into the dynamics generated by the Provincial Administrative Organization ( PAO ) chairman election taking place there on June 30.
The election of the ruling Pheu Thai Party’s PAO chairman is expected to show Pheu Thai’s resolve to resurrect its long-standing dominance in Pathum Thani, which was overshadowed by the main opposition’s Move Forward Party ( MFP ) in the last election. Additionally, the Bhumjaithai Party, the coalition’s partner, may try to gain support outside of its classic lower Northeast, and the MFP may help Bhumjaithai, according to the source.
When former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was on parole, he traveled to the state to demand that the dark shirts, who make up the majority of Pheu Thai’s supporters, unite and support the ruling party.
His call, made during a celebration of the monk ordination of a child of one of Pathum Thani’s well-known social scions, was seen as the primary obvious indication that Pheu Thai was attempting to reclaim the best office in Thai politics.
Despite never being a Pheu Thai part, Thaksin, in the opinion of critics, is growing more and more of a party mixer at his own risk. The former leading has frequently denied pulling the group’s strings. He appeared to be distancing himself from a potential reaction caused by the laws prohibiting non-members of a group from interfering with its interests.
Following the 2014 revolution engineered by the National Council for Peace and Order, Pheu Thai needs all the support it can summon to reclaim its course after nearly a century in the political forest.
Pheu Thai does not be able to regain its reputation in time for the following general election in just over three decades, according to the worry.
The group believes that to regain its purple shirt support, it may start from scratch.
Thaksin, who is regarded as Pheu Thai’s de facto leader, is thought to be the best person to seduce red jerseys back to the party and has been on an unpleasant involving purple shirt beauty that has taken him from Chiang Mai to Nonthaburi to Nakhon Ratchasima and Pathum Thani.
The key to gaining seats in a general election is forging connections with constituents, and Local Administrative Organization ( LAO ) and PAO elections are the best places to do this.
According to the cause, many officials who want to become MPs must either hold high department in an LAO or draw on the political influence of powerful individuals there to win the election.
In Pathum Thani, Pheu Thai has cultivated some powerful people in local politics to support it defeat U Lt Gen Kamronwit Toopkrajang, a previous Pathum Thani PAO chair, in the upcoming PAO surveys.
Unfortunately, Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit was again touted as a Thaksin student, devoted to Pheu Thai. The former police commissioner pins a new level insignia on his uniform to represent his profound gratitude after being promoted to the police force because he had held the previous premier in such high regard.
But, after Thaksin fled to exile abroad in the wake of the revolution of 2006, Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit stepped up to local elections in Pathum Thani, where he eventually established close ties with a Bhumjaithai that was determined to gain popularity in the lower Central Plains districts.
Bhumjaithai’s plan is to safe Pathum Thani and ascend the Chao Phraya River to win seats in the Bhumjaithai-bounded Ayutthaya, which is now led by Paradorn Prissanananthakul from Bhumjaithai.
Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit’s connections with Bhumjaithai did not sit well with Thaksin, who has backed Charn Phuangphet as Pheu Thai’s participant in the June 30 PAO vote. Mr. Charn relies on red-shirt citizens to cast a ballot for him to have a chance of winning the PAO leadership post.
However, the odds appear to be stacking against him, according to a recent Nida ( National Institute of Development Administration ) survey.
It found 31 % favoured Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit, ahead of Mr Charn at 28 %, with 17 % undecided.
Some, among the 17 %, are believed to be followers of the MFP, which has not fielded a member for the vote. It is only natural that they may be having a difficult time deciding between the candidate from Pheu Thai and Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit, who is running for the Khon Rak Pathum ( Love Pathum ) organization.
The MFP surprised many when it announced it would not contest the PAO vote and not support a member from another group, nearly wiped out Pheu Thai out in last week’s general election in the state after managing to get all but one of the votes in question.
The organization claimed that it was pressed for time to find a suitable prospect.
According to a source with knowledge of the situation, the MFP was heavily involved in a domestic discord when choosing a applicant.
Another observer claimed that Pheu Thai might be taken into account if Stock voters were to choose a prospect because the ruling party had been accused of “double-crossing” the MFP when the ruling party dissolved their empire in favor of forming the present government with traditional parties last year.
If some MFP supporters continue to feel hurt and choose to be vindictive, Pol Lt Gen Kamronwit could gain while Bhumjaithai, who is believed to be in good company with him, may gain.
Never yet out of the trees.
Although the Constitutional Court’s decision regarding the legality of the Senate election law effectively gives the go-ahead for the Senate election’s final stage, it does not mean the Election Commission (EC ) can relax.
Ittiporn: Zero can prevent Senate surveys
Under the court’s scrutiny were Sections 36, 40 ( 3 ), 41 ( 3 ) and 42 ( 3 ) of the organic law governing the Senate election. A group of Senate prospects started a complaint, and this week’s decision was made in reply.
The candidates ‘ self-introduction is a part of Section 36, while the other three parts deal with voting at the district, municipal, and national levels at the same group and across professional teams.
The plaintiffs claimed that some of the rules imposed in the natural laws appeared to favor candidates with more resources and opened the door to interference. They even argued the laws contained loopholes, making ballot at all three levels prone to adjustment.
This allowed for national-level election on June 26 to proceed as planned, and all nine judges unanimously decided on Tuesday that these four areas were in line with the contract.
However, according to observers, the decision does not handle any potential disputes and legal problems that the EC may have with regard to how it handled the three-week Senate contest, in which only the candidates are permitted to cast ballots.
There have been allegations of abnormalities, such as individuals who were offered money to enroll and vote for their applicants and candidates who had falsely claimed to be qualified. The EC, however, stands accused of taking no motion, resorting to what is known as an “endorsing second, disqualify later” plan.
The polling place may expect legal issues as soon as these allegations come up, according to observers.
As of June 16, the committee had received 80 concerns about irregularities and collaboration at the city and provincial levels, according to EC president Ittiporn Boonpracong.
Within three days of an election day, complaints can be made with the EC or Supreme Court, according to Mr. Ittiporn.
He argued that nothing could prevent the Senate election from proceeding. We will make every effort to finish an investigation into complaints right away. We will ensure justice for all candidates”, the EC chairman said.
The complaints come from attempts to fix the Senate election and reflect the EC’s shortcomings in handling the race, according to Olarn Thinbangtieo, a political science lecturer at Burapha University in Chon Buri province.
Candidates should file a complaint with the Supreme Court’s Election Division about the commission’s “endorse first, disqualify later” policy, he said.
The EC typically handles complaints of election fraud through this tactic, which explains why it chose to hold off on holding the Senate election despite knowing it would encounter this problem, according to Mr. Olarn.
A reserve list of 100 Senate candidates is a backup plan, according to the analyst, to avoid having a senator step down. However, he doubted whether the reserve list could be a useful tool for those who later become dishonored due to fraud.
” Some situations may be helpful in some cases, but others will be challenging, especially when there is fraud involved,” says the candidate in reserve.
” These complaints may well lead back to the district- level voting, which had two rounds of intra- group and inter- group selection, “he said.
There will also be a reserve list of five candidates for each of the 20 professional groups after the 200 senators are chosen.
Jade Donavanik, a former legal advisor to a charter drafting panel and scholar, claimed the Constitutional Court’s decision affirms that organic law is constitutionally sound. However, it by no means endorses the EC’s handling of the Senate election.
According to him, the alleged irregularities suggested that the EC’s handling of the election had been found to be unsatisfactory, which has allegedly allowed political or interest groups to meddle and fix the vote.
” People who feel they did not receive fairness or lost the right to contest]the election ] can take the matter to the court, “he said.
In the final round of voting on June 26 at the Impact Muang Thong Thani in Nonthaburi, a total of 3, 000 candidates will vie for 200 seats. The EC intends to finish the voting in a day, with the official results likely to be announced on July 2.