Charter drafters are considering ways to review impeachment proceedings with the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) failing to impeach former education minister Somsak Prisnananthakul over allegations of unusual wealth on Friday.
Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) chairman Meechai Ruchupan indicated the current method, which places the impeachment authority in the hands of the Senate, is flawed. Mr Meechai conceded yesterday the Senate faces practical challenges in impeaching political post holders.
Politicians try to exert their influence and dominate the Senate to sway its decision in impeachment cases, he said.
Under the interim constitution, the NLA acts as both the House of Representatives and the Senate. It performs the duty of the Senate in deciding an impeachment and yesterday it failed to impeach Mr Somsak over allegations of unusual wealth, falling short of the 132 votes required.
An impeachment, which would again have barred Mr Somsak from politics for five years, required a three-fifths majority of the 220-member NLA. Only 109 members voted for impeachment, while 82 voted against, three abstained and one ballot was invalidated.
In May, the NLA filed an impeachment motion against the 64-year-old adviser to the Chartthaipattana Party on the grounds that he failed to include a house worth 16 million baht on his assets-and-liabilities declaration while in office from July 9, 1999, to Nov 9, 2000.
Construction of the house in Ang Thong began in 1998 when Mr Somsak was a deputy education minister, and was completed in 2001.
The NACC found that Mr Somsak could not explain the origin of the 16 million baht he spent to build the house. The Supreme Court has already accepted a request for a trial over seizure of the home.
Yesterday, Mr Meechai insisted the challenge for the charter drafters was to figure out how to immediately remove the political post holders or MPs on grounds of disqualification after the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) recommends impeachment against them on power abuse charges and not over acquisition of unusual wealth.
In the unusual wealth cases, impeachment proceedings might not apply in the future.
The charter may be changed so that the politicians go through the justice process and once the Criminal Court accepts the case for hearing, the politicians will face suspension of duty pending trial.
“This morning [when the NLA voted on the Somsak case], we saw that the current system of impeachment doesn't easily succeed in practice. Even the NLA couldn’t remove him [Mr Somsak],” Mr Meechai said.
Mr Meechai also hinted at the possibility of the charter being amended to get rid of appointed senators.
He explained the central issue that concerns the charter drafters is how to keep future senators from lobbying or being influenced by the politicians.
His remark contradicted earlier reports that the future Senate may be wholly appointed, judging from the likelihood of the NACC being given the power to impeach political post holders.