Mobile centres to offer election ‘education’

Govt says people need ‘accurate’ knowledge

A mobile Damrongtham government complaint centre will hit the road and visit villages in the provinces to educate local communities about election law and the poll roadmap, according to the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO).

“The country is moving into the preelection period and people need to prepare for the poll expected to be held on Feb 24 next year,” said NCPO deputy spokeswoman Sirichan Ngathong.

Army chief Apirat Kongsompong, as the NCPO secretary-general, has ordered the complaint centre to go mobile and listen to people’s problems in their communities, she said.

The mobile centre’s primary task is to educate people about the basic features of the organic law on the election of MPs, which will come into effect on Dec 12.

Col Sirichan said it was important that the public had “accurate” knowledge of what the law is about and how to prepare for an election.

This will be helpful for state agencies and organisations involved in arranging the election, she added.

However, critics said the mobile centre must function in a non-partisan manner to avoid the charge that it might endorse one party over another.

Also yesterday, many world leaders voiced their support for next year’s election to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, as he attended a commemoration marking the 100th anniversary of the Armistice that brought World War I to an end at the Arc de Triomphe in France, according to deputy government spokesman Sukondhapatipak.

Lt Gen Werachon said Gen Prayut insisted to those assembled that he has not made up his mind about a career in politics.

The premier assured the leaders there will be a continuation of policies started by the regime after the next election and that the Feb 24 election would go ahead as planned.

Gen Prayut has so far declined to say if he is ready to accept an offer from a political party to put down his name as its prime ministerial candidate.

However, Varawut Silpa-archa, the chairman of the Chartthaipattana Party’s policy and strategy committee, said yesterday that he believed parties would not raise any objections if the poll was deferred by a month or two from the proposed date.

He said parties should only contest the election when they are fully ready and Feb 24 may give them too little time to prepare.

Mr Varawut explained that the current mooted date poses a critical problem for many parties which are struggling to recruit enough members to be eligible to contest the poll.

“If the date does not change, parties will have to close membership enrolment on Nov 26. This is because candidates must have been members for at least 90 days before the election to qualify to stand as MPs for that party,” he said.

Mr Varawut added that any delay in announcing the designation of constituencies would leave parties a short period of time in which to conduct their primary votes to choose MP candidates.

The Thai Raksa Chart and the Future Forward parties, meanwhile, have predicted a landslide poll victory for antiregime parties.

Future Forward deputy leader Lt Gen Pongsakorn Rodchompoo said if a recent opinion survey by the Nida Poll which forecast a 95% voter turnout in the next poll were true, it might be good news for pro-democracy political parties.

He said a high turnout in Myanmar in the previous poll propelled the National League for Democracy Party to its triumph over pro-military parties.