Yingluck must apologise to the people

Yingluck must apologise to the people

The mood of quite a few protesters has clearly gone beyond the blanket amnesty issue. The shouts of "Yingluck get out" that resonated at every protest site – Samsen railway station, Silom, Asoke intersection and Ratchadamnoen – along with the ear-deafening whistle blowing are indicative of the mood.

At this stage, the Ratchadamnoen protest leader, the now former Democrat MP Suthep Thaugsuban, appears somewhat hesitant about whether he will lead the attempt to oust the government, as many protesters would wish, although he confided privately to a reporter that he would prefer to "go to the end of the soi".

For the time being, his demand is that the bill must be "killed" for good, which is technically questionable even though the Senate voted unanimously to reject the bill on Monday night.

The government chief whip, Amnuay Klangpha, said he would propose a special joint meeting of the Senate and the House this Wednesday for a general debate to find a solution to this legal hitch in order to put the bill to rest once and for all, as demanded by the protesters.

Protesters at Asoke intersection blow whistles against the amnesty bill and Prime Minister Yingluck on Monday, Nov 11, 2013. Bangkok Post photo

Mr Amnuay said he had consulted legal experts about how to kill the legislation, and floated the idea of treating the bill as a financial bill, which would then require it be sent to the prime minister for endorsement and instead be officially refused.

The experts rejected the idea, saying that it could not be done because the government and the Pheu Thai party had already declared it was not a financial bill.

Perhaps, it is about time for Mr Amnuay to seek advice from the country’s top legal expert and former chairman of the now defunct National Assembly, Meechai Ruchuphan, who earlier suggested that the bill be "killed" instead of just being rendered "unconscious".

Despite repeated assurances from the Pheu Thai Party and its coalition partners that the bill would not be resurrected for reconsideration after the compulsory 180-day waiting period, the protesters remain suspicious and do not trust their words. They want the bill dispatched for good, and they want it now.

The anti-government camp’s distrust of the government was already profound and seems to have sunk even further after the government resorted to asking the red-shirt movement, the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, for help, as witnessed at the meeting last week of the UDD which was attended by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her sister, Yaowapa Wongsawat.

One day after the meeting, tens of thousands of red-shirt followers were bused to Bangkok from the provinces in a show of force at Muang Thong Thani on Sunday, to counter the anti-government protesters.

Of course, the government has made a full-throttle U-turn over the blanket amnesty bill, but one thing is still missing – there is no sign of regret or repentance for the gross mistake over the bill from either the Pheu Thai Party or the prime minister herself.

University rectors have urged the government to make an official apology to the people for its mistake in starting the current political uproar. Yet there is still silence from the prime minister, the head of the government.

A government leader must not shy away from taking responsibility for a mistake. That is one element of good leadership. It is high time Ms Yingluck showed some leadership quality and not continue to hide behind the shadow of her elder brother, Thaksin Shinawatra.

Perhaps, only perhaps, this may ease the political tension and calm the mood of the protesters.

Veera Prateepchaikul

Former Editor

Former Bangkok Post Editor, political commentator and a regular columnist at Post Publishing.

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