King okays special Senate sessions to endorse members of 3 agencies
His Majesty the King has issued a royal command allowing the Senate to convene a special session to deliberate the qualifications of members of three independent organisations.
The command states that the Senate speaker has informed the King that the Senate is obliged under the Constitution’s Article 126 (2) to consider the qualifications of potential members of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), the State Audit Commission, and the Election Commission. The special session will begin on May 23.
The royal command, countersigned by Senate Speaker Pornpetch Wichitcholchai, was issued on Monday and published in the Royal Gazette on Tuesday.
A royal command for a special session was necessary because the Parliament is in recess pending the election of a new House of Representatives.
Khamnoon Sitthisamarn, spokesman of the Senate coordination committee on parliamentary affairs, said on Wednesday that Pornpetch chaired a Senate whip meeting on April 26 and it was resolved that a special session was urgently required to consider the qualifications of potential candidates.
He said at the meeting, the whip realised that NACC now has six commissioners, when its full bench should have nine.
The meeting was told that two of the six existing commissioners will complete their term in September, and when that happens, the NACC will not have a minimum of five members required to continue working.
At the special session, the Senate will consider whether to endorse Sathaporn Wisaphom, whose background and qualifications have been checked by a special Senate committee, Khamnoon said.
The Senate will also appoint another special committee to check the background and qualifications of two more NACC candidates – former Appeals Court president Pasawat Kanoknak and lawyer Sombat Thoratham.
The Senate will also consider whether to endorse Silak Punnuam, former deputy director-general of the Budget Bureau, as a new member of the State Audit Commission.
For the Election Commission, the Senate is due to study the background of Chai Nakhonchai, former director-general of the Cultural Promotion Department, Khamnoon said.
