POST REPORTERS

Exit polls led by Suan Dusit Poll stirred controversy yesterday as political leaders remained sceptical about their predictions with some even accusing pollsters of simply guessing the results.

They made their predictions despite a strong warning from the Election Commission not to do so.

In one case, ballot boxes had not even been closed to voters when the Suan Dusit Poll of Suan Dusit Rajabhat University predicted the results.

Within minutes after the polling period ended at 3.00pm, Sukhum Chaleysub unveiled his results on constituency seats to the press. He confidently predicted the Thai Rak Thai party would get 329 seats, followed by the Democrats with 55, Chart Thai 15 and Mahachon only one. The margin of error was 10%, according to Mr Sukhum.

The early exit polls drove armies of newshounds to the leaders and key figures of political parties for swift and live interviews and post-election comments.

Political heavyweights from the Democrat, Chart Thai and Mahachon parties called Suan Dusit Poll's outcome too cruel and said they could be wrong.

``If we don't have a single representative in Nakhon Ratchasima, I will break into the house of Virat Ratanaset, the deputy leader of the Mahachon party,'' Maj-Gen Sanan Kachornprasart, adviser to the Mahachon, said at his residence in Nonthaburi in the presence of key party figures.

``I will prostrate to Suwat Liptapanlop as I had promised to do and I will stop being an adviser to the Mahachon party if it is true because it will be very embarrassing to have garnered only one seat,'' he said.

``But if the election results do not match the exit polls, I will stamp on Mr Sukhum Chaleysub,'' he said angrily.

Democrat leader Banyat Bantadtan and senior party adviser and former prime minster Chuan Leekpai said he did not want to believe in the poll because his staff had worked hard to woo voters in their constituencies.

Despite admitting defeat, Mr Banyat said he was surprised by the predictions and still believed the party would get more seats than what the exit polls were predicting.

``I am shocked as I don't think the Democrat party will shrink in size in parliament. Will we have less than 100 seats?'' the embattled Democrat party leader said.

He insisted that the party would fair better in Bangkok and the Northeast than what the pollsters are saying when the vote counting ends.

Abhisit Vejjajiva, the party's deputy leader, said he had no faith in exit polls, especially the Suan Dusit poll, which had predicted that the Democrat would win only one seat in Bangkok.

Thai Rak Thai party chief Thaksin Shinawatra appeared not to be surprised at what the polls showed, saying they were in line with his party's calculation.

Suriyasai Katasila, secretary-general of the Campaign for Popular Democracy, commented that exit polls were a double-edged sword. Although it reflected academic freedom, poll makers also give politicians a chance to influence the public, he said.

An influenced poll presents an opportunity for people holding state power to abuse their authority and secure the same election results as the predictions, and also convince people to accept dirty election results without a doubt, he said.