Politicians must put public first

Politicians must put public first

The near-derailing of the first session of the House of Representatives yesterday reflects the unhealthy state of the country's national politics in the post-coup era.

The session, the country's first parliamentary session after five years, was attended in full force by both old faces and first-time Members of Parliament. Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, the leader of the Future Forward Party who was ordered by the charter court to suspend his duty as an MP pending a ruling over a controversial shareholding case, also turned up at the TOT's meeting room -- the temporary meeting place of the House -- late yesterday morning. He left the meeting place shortly after he arrived.

Bhumjaithai heavyweight Chai Chidchob took the House speaker role for the inaugural meeting, before the House officially selected as speaker Chuan Leekpai from the Democrat Party.

Mr Chai, 91, led MPs in the swearing-in ceremony and proceeded with the meeting amid speculation that some elements in the pro-junta PPRP might rock the boat, as negotiations for cabinet seats were still unsettled.

The key issue on yesterday's agenda was the selection of House speaker, which saw tight competition between the pro-junta camp led by the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), which was supposed to support Mr Chuan, while the anti-military bloc led by the Pheu Thai Party nominated Sompong Amornwiwat.

After several hours of delay, Mr Chuan, an 80-year-old Democrat party-list MP, won narrowly, with 258 against 235 in the secret voting. By winning the role of House speaker with support from the PPRP, it is likely the Democrats will become a coalition party.

The inaugural House meeting yesterday was upsetting in many ways.

To begin with, it must be admitted that the TOT meeting room, which is not designed as a House meeting room, is not appropriate for the activity. The full array of session devices is not available, as there is no automatic counting machine and there are not enough microphones for all MPs. Instead of each MP having their own individual microphone, many had to share. All counts including the quorum were conducted manually, with each MP raising his or her hand or voicing their vote.

It remains unclear if the new parliament, which is located in the Kiak-kai area, will be ready in time for House activities when the TOT rental contract ends in September. The construction of the building is nearly four years behind deadline, which was originally set for 2015.

It is reported the Secretariat of the House of Representatives rents the place from the TOT for 11 million baht per month.

More importantly, the attempts of some PPRP politicians who reportedly tried to maximise their benefits ahead of the coalition formation, causing two and a half hours of delay in the House selection process, did not bode well for parliamentary politics and the country's bid to return to democracy.

The House session, which was interrupted several times by protests made by frustrated MPs, almost collapsed while both sides tried to defend their agendas. It was by all means a betrayal of public expectation. Several politicians under the PPRP banner who returned to the session so late that it was almost called off deserve condemnation.

The interruption gave the impression that some politicians are still self-serving, rather than serving both their voters and their country. This is unfortunate.

Yesterday's tight competition between the two blocs is also reflective of a political atmosphere that is likely to be shrouded with turbulence in the coming months.

It's quite certain that whichever side manages to win the right to head the coalition will find it difficult to run the country, as it will have to keep the balance within the bloc while facing the opposition.

Under such circumstances, the coalition will be very fragile.

But this is democracy and from now on, each party in parliament should strictly follow democratic rules. There may be some differences, but they must settle the differences in a democratic way.

Putting aside the differences of each political bloc, politicians should be aware that part of their duty as elected MPs is to listen to the people, and they must put the public interest before their personal interest.

All elected MPs have to ensure that democracy works for Thailand. That can be achieved if the politicians bear in mind that it's their job to do their best for the country, not for themselves or for the bloc.

Editorial

Bangkok Post editorial column

These editorials represent Bangkok Post thoughts about current issues and situations.

Email : anchaleek@bangkokpost.co.th

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