Govt opens ‘order’ centres

THE government has started setting up centres at provincial and district levels nationwide to ensure that the August 7 referendum on the new charter runs smoothly.

Government Spokesperson Maj-General Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the centres, the first of which were opened on Friday, were responsible for emergency planning, monitoring the situation and setting up checkpoints.

A crucial order was announced yesterday to facilitate the opening of the centres after there were movements by politicians ahead of the referendum process.

Sansern said the centres would seek information on activity that caused commotion, distorted the charter draft’s content or violated the referendum law, as well as handle matters in line with the public assembly bill.

The centres are run by the Interior Ministry with provincial branches directed by governors and district branches handled by local officials, Sansern added. The centres will deliver executive reports in the pre-referendum phase from now until August 6 and then in the post-referendum phase from August 8 to 10 or until the situation settles.

Sansern told The Nation that the centres’ establishment had nothing to do with political movement. They were set up because the referendum is around the corner, he said. 

However, their establishment came after rival politicians last week said they wanted to hold talks to discuss ways to achieve reconciliation.

The plan was reportedly initiated by Pheu Thai veteran politician Sudarat Keyuraphan.

Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Friday that politicians should talk privately and “can do anything they like as long as it is not against the law”.

Colonel Piyapong Klinpan, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) deputy chief of public relations, said the NCPO would monitor any activities to ensure Thailand remained in order before the referendum date.

“We already have the referendum bill that bars any actions that can confuse the public [about the plebiscite],” Piyapong said. “I would like to ask politicians to let the Election Commission and the charter drafters carry out their duties as usual.”

The Democrat Party’s deputy leader Nipit Intarasombat said that he and Sudarat had agreed to hold talks informally and in private so politicians could express opinions comfortably and freely. 

Nipit encouraged “non-extremist” academics to support the talks to lessen public doubt. He stressed that the talks were not meant to oppose the junta.

Pheu Thai member Group Captain Anudith Nakornthap agreed with holding talks but said that it should be staged openly to avoid public scepticism.

Both Nipit and Anudith said politicians should stop attacking one another so political hatred could be restrained.

Suriyasai Katasila, deputy rector of Rangsit University’s College of Social Innovation, said political issues were far too complicated to be solved by politicians merely talking.Suriyasai urged political parties to undergo reforms to regain public trust.

United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) co-leader Nattawut Saikua said the government’s order to set up the centres would raise public doubts over whether authorities wanted to ensure the referendum result was in their favour.

Nattawut also criticised the government for “copycatting” the UDD’s countrywide anti-fraud centres that aimed to monitor possible corruption during the referendum process. Many of the centres were shut down last month at their opening ceremonies as authorities said they broke the junta’s order banning political gatherings of more than four people.

“The government told us we didn’t have to set up the centres because the EC [Election Commission] is already in charge of tackling voting corruption,” the UDD figure said. 

Election Commissioner Somchai Srisutthiyakorn said he did not know the details of the centres but would welcome them as the government was helping the EC keep the plebiscite process in order.

“People should not worry that the centres will infringe on their rights,” Somchai said. “They are certainly unaffected as long as they don’t aim to create a commotion.”

Meanwhile, Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva called on the prime minister, in his capacity as head of the NCPO, to ensure that the junta stays neutral in the referendum process.

In an exclusive interview with The Nation, Abhisit suggested that Prayut should withdraw state mechanisms deployed to help disseminate the charter content and adjust its stance on the matter because it was now viewed as a campaigner for referendum.