A political reform committee has revealed the details of its reform blueprint with urgent priority being given to fair and fraud-free elections.
The committee, along with a national reform committee on anti-corruption and another on energy, held a briefing yesterday to discuss progress in drawing up their reform plans at the Government House news conference centre Thursday.
Anek Laothamatas, chairman of the reform panel on politics, said that as the general election is expected to take place early next year, the panel's most pressing priority is to ensure the elections are fair and free of fraud.
He also stressed that politicians who contest in the election must be capable people and must not come up with policies that cause a financial burden to the country.
These are among the political reform proposals which he will present to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha for consideration, Mr Anek said.
He also said it is important for the government to come up with a long-term national strategy, apart from tackling pressing problems on a daily basis.
He was referring to the government's national strategy which will set out action plans for long-term national development over the next 20 years.
Mr Anek said that political reform also means that the people must become citizens who contribute more to the country rather than just making demands.
Mr Anek said the committee will table legislation to accommodate these political reform proposals to the National Legislative Assembly.
The political reform committee is now targeting five areas for reform: the establishment of fair and fraud-free elections, the creation of a dhammathipatai (dhamma democracy based on religious virtues) state, the promotion of a healthy political culture in a democracy with the King as head of state, the implementation of mechanisms to settle conflicts by peaceful means, and the decentralisation of power to local governing bodies and fair management and distribution of natural resources.
Meanwhile, Parnthep Klanarongran, chairman of the corruption prevention and suppression reform panel, said the anti-graft plan will be consistent with the government's 20-year national strategy.
It complies with Section 64 of the constitution which requires the government to encourage the public to take part in anti-graft efforts and the government must also give protection to people who provide leads about corruption, Mr Parnthep said.
Pornchai Rujiprapa, chairman of the reform panel on energy, said the key to energy reform is to ensure energy supplies are sufficient, secure and reasonably priced.
Energy reform also involves efficient energy use and energy saving, and he stressed the need for legislation to control electricity use in buildings.