MONGKOL BANGPRAPA
The government should suspend its charter amendment bid until a special parliamentary committee completes its study of the 2007 constitution, said committee chairman Kramol Thongthammachart yesterday.
The People Power party (PPP)-led government may face unexpected consequences if it presses ahead with its attempt to rewrite the charter without taking into account the panel's findings, he warned.
The 60-strong committee, which was set up in June, is made up of representatives from the government and opposition whips.
The committee is expected to complete its study report early next month and the government should consider its findings before going ahead with its charter rewrite bid, Mr Kramol said.
He added the panel has found certain structural problems in the 2007 charter.
The charter was designed to strengthen the balance of power between the administrative, legislative and judiciary branches. As a result, the administrative power has been weakened to the extent that makes it difficult for a government to implement its policy.
''Article 190 of the charter [which is about international agreement on the country's territory] is part of the problems,'' said Mr Kramol, a former Constitution Court president.
He added that he would personally prefer the charter rewrite to be carried out through a parliamentary process, either through a constitution drafting committee or a special committee.
The Samak Sundaravej government is also drafting another charter amendment proposal which is to be tabled before parliament during its general assembly next month.
Mr Kramol said he did not know if his panel's recommendations would be in line with the government's draft charter amendments.
After all, he said, it was not certain whether rewriting the charter would help solve the ongoing political conflicts, since they did not stem from the constitution, but from disagreements between opposing parties.
However, a committee source said some panel members did not want to work in a hurry in order to complete the study by early next month, saying such a short deadline could affect the credibility of the panel's report.
At the same time, some were frustrated that the PPP was planning to amend the charter before the panel completed its study report, the source said.
They even suggested at a recent panel meeting that the committee should be dissolved.
Seri Suwanpanon, former deputy chairman of the 2007 Constitution Drafting Assembly, backed Mr Kramol's call for the government to wait for the committee's findings before filing another charter amendment motion.
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