The prime minister, under a charter change proposal, does not have to be a member of the House of Representatives, a spokesman of the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) said yesterday.
Kamnoon Sidhisamarn, also a member of the National Reform Council, said the panel has reached a consensus on the qualifications for prime minister and one of them is that he or she will no longer be required to be an MP.
However, the prime minister would need to be endorsed by the House before being appointed by the monarch, Mr Kamnoon said.
He said the CDC reached this decision because of the previous political stalemate. Having a non-MP as prime minister is expected to help the country avoid any political deadlock that might occur, Mr Kamnoon said.
The panel's decision to drop the MP requirement is likely to trigger heated debate. The requirement for a prime minister to come via an election stemmed from the 1992 political crisis when Gen Suchinda Kraprayoon, one of the military leaders who overthrew the Chatichai Choonhavan government in a 1991 coup, was appointed prime minister. This led to street protests and a bloody crackdown — the so-called Black May incident.
However, having an MP as a premier was questioned during last year's political crisis. Protesters under the People's Democratic Reform Committee had demanded the caretaker cabinet resign to pave the way for an interim government and neutral prime minister.
Mr Kamnoon played down concerns that allowing an outsider would prompt the House of Representatives to nominate just anyone, saying the House is unlikely to break with tradition and nominate a non-MP as premier.
"We believe that under the mixed member proportional electoral system we have proposed, the House is more likely to pick someone from within its ranks," he said when asked what would happen if the House opts for a relative of a political party financier or a powerful military officer. Coalition governments are more likely under MMP, and the party with the most votes could nominate someone from its list for PM.
Mr Kamnoon also revealed yesterday the CDC had decided on the number of senators and how they are appointed. There should be no more than 200 senators and they should be selected from among five groups of people, he said.
These groups are former members of the executive, the judiciary and the legislature; former high-ranking state officials such as military leaders and permanent secretaries; heads of legally-registered professional organisations such as the Thai Chamber of Commerce; people's organisations such as labor unions or cooperatives; and various organisations such as trade associations.
Senators from the first four groups will be selected, while those from the fifth will be elected, according to Mr Kamnoon. The Senate needs to represent people from diverse groups. The tenure of senators is still undecided but is likely to be short, possibly three years, he said.
He said the Senate will be able to propose bills for the House of Representatives to consider. However, the bills are likely to be limited to reform measures. Senators will also be required to scrutinise cabinet nominees before they are royally endorsed, he said.