Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon on Friday shrugged off former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's prediction the Pheu Thai Party would clinch a landslide victory in the next general election.
"If you want to believe, feel free to. But I don't," Gen Prawit said, responding to media reports about the fugitive former premier's prediction.
Thaksin and his younger sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, were spotted in Japan on Thursday when they joined the launch of a book of a former Japanese politician.
In February, they were were spotted in Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore which they visited for private purposes.
According to the media reports, Thaksin predicted bright prospects for the Pheu Thai Party in the next election in a brief interview on the sidelines of the function held at the New Otani Hotel.
"I'm not involved with the party [Pheu Thai]. They really don't want me to get involved," he said. "But I believe they have a lot of good people in the party and they should be able to lead the party to another landslide victory," Thaksin said when asked about Pheu Thai's strategy at the election, expected in next February.
"We wish to return to democracy as soon as possible, the system that allows free speech and guarantees human rights to the people. That is what Thailand needs, especially in this modern economy. You need democracy to allow more creativity to happen," he said.
Earlier, a state security agency found that if the election was held now, Pheu Thai would win most seats. The fugitive former prime ministers are staying in Japan until tomorrow when they will leave for China, according to the reports.
Their public appearance in Japan increased the pressure on the government and agencies responsible for tracking them down and bringing them to justice. Both fled the country before the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions handed down rulings.
Thaksin fled in 2008 just before the court sentenced him to two years in jail for a conflict of interest in which his then wife, Khunying Potjaman, purchased a state-owned land plot in Ratchadaphisek in 2003 during his tenure as prime minister.
Yingluck escaped the country last August also just before the court gave her a five-year prison term for negligence after she failed to take action to stop damages caused by her government's rice-pledging scheme. Asked if the pair's public appearance was intended to show the regime's failure to bring them to justice, Gen Prawit said the authorities were on the case.
He also said the government would inform Japanese authorities that the convictions against the siblings were not political ones.
"They were former leaders, but we have to clarify to Japan that their cases aren't political," the deputy premier said.
Thailand does not have an extradition treaty with Japan. The country has such a treaty with 14 countries and a treaty on mutual assistance in criminal matters with six other countries.
According to sources, extradition requests are reviewed by courts in those countries which usually grant the requests if the cases do not involve political or religious crimes. Gen Prawit declined to say what the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) thought about the siblings' actions or if they were trying to send any signal.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Friday kept a tight lip when asked about the siblings' appearance in Japan before he left for a weekend GMS summit in Hanoi. Deputy police chief Srivara Ransibrahmanakul said yesterday the police's foreign affairs division confirmed the photos of Thaksin and Yingluck were taken on Thursday. He said the police had spoken to the Office of Attorney-General (OAG) after receiving the photos.
Commenting on Thaksin's landslide victory boast, Pheu Thai core member Samart Kaewmeechai said the ex-prime minister must have spoken from experience.
The former prime minister was the brainchild of the now-defunct Thai Rak Thai whose policy platforms were adopted by the Pheu Thai Party -- its second reincarnation after the People Power Party. "He understands that those policy platforms are in the public's best interest and the people still get the benefit to this day. I think he believes voters remain loyal to the policy and the party.
"And when an election takes place amid today's problems, the people are likely to continue supporting the party. [We] are just waiting for the election," he said.
Meanwhile, several key Pheu Thai figures are turning to social media to call on their colleagues to confirm their membership status before the end of April. On his Facebook, Pheu Thai Party secretary-general Phumtham Wechayachai said the members can help strengthen the party by updating their status.
However, he urged those interested in applying as new members to be patient as they must wait for the NCPO to remove the long-imposed ban on political activities.