Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha urged people Monday not to be brainwashed by "illusory democracy", saying the use of Section 44 of the interim charter to cut through red tape and run the government more effectively does not run counter to the achievement of democratic ideals.
The premier's comments came in response to criticism of his use of the special power to push through policies.
Speaking during the opening ceremony of the "GovChannel" project, a data hub for the public to gain access to state agencies' information and services, Gen Prayut said he used Section 44 to help address the country's problems and overcome obstacles to projects.
The premier has been criticised by members of the public, who do not believe it is democratic to use Section 44. They have also noticed the prime minister appears to be making increasing use of S44. "I don't want Thai people to be deceived by illusory democracy. I want them to find out what real democracy is," said Gen Prayut.
The prime minister said instead of electing politicians and handing power to them, people need to learn how to exercise their power to achieve what they really want.
He said elections are only the beginning and the voters need to hold the government accountable for fixing every problem in the country. Otherwise, politicians will help only the people who vote them in, he said.
"Don't pay much attention to the elections. To become a democracy, several countries had to get through misery and bloodshed," he added.
Gen Prayut also assured the public that Thailand would return to democracy, but people need to figure out how to make the government run effectively.
The premier said the country's conflict is unsolved because those who exploited bureaucracy for their own benefit are still resisting changes in the new administration.
Gen Prayut said he realised government officials are struggling to cope with new projects and procedures. Some groups that benefited unfairly from the old system are not adjusting well, making it difficult for Thailand to achieve peace and reconciliation, he said.
"We all have to work together to solve the country's issues, not argue. If it continues like this, problems will not be addressed no matter how many governments or charters we have because everyone wants to return to the same place," said Gen Prayut.
The media should consider the content they publish, and not harm the country, he said.
Meanwhile, GovChannel, a Thai-language portal, aims to become a focal point of communication between the public and government agencies. The website GovChannel.go.th has 18,806 handbooks on how to apply for state services and links to all government agencies' websites.
Besides the website, the public services can be reached on the GAC mobile application, which has links to approved applications for 108 agencies.
The services can also be sampled at government service kiosks, which require identification cards.