
With a series of delays, the bid to amend the constitution is in a predicament despite being an election campaign policy for all parties.
Parliament decided to put off deliberation of charter amendment proposals, aimed at paving the way for setting up a charter drafting assembly (CDA), from this week to next month so that each party will reach a consensus.
The setting up of a CDA, which is responsible for writing a new constitution, is stipulated under Section 256 of the charter.
The 2017 junta-sponsored charter was written by a now-dissolved CDA under law guru Meechai Ruchuphan in a way that makes any amendments near impossible. A referendum for a new charter is one of the hurdles.
Parliament must sort out how many referendum rounds are necessary to give the charter amendment bid the all-clear. There is a division over the charter court's 2021 ruling, which suggested three rounds.
The People's Party (PP) insists two are sufficient, citing budget concerns as each referendum costs at least three billion baht and results in more delays for a charter rewrite.
Last month, parliament argued over a plan to fix the referendum for the charter, with the ruling party and PP pushing for a simple majority against a double majority -- over 50% of eligible voters must participate in the process, and over 50% of those participating agree.
The double majority is favoured by the Senate, which is closely affiliated with Bhumjaithai, a coalition partner. Critics see the double majority as a foot-dragging tactic.
Even though the House of Representatives eventually won the referendum tussle on Dec 18 last year, it still has to wait another 180 days before the referendum law governing a simple majority takes effect. With the 180-day suspension period, the formation of CDA is delayed further.
Several key figures in Pheu Thai are cautious about whether amending the entire charter can be done by the next election in 2027. There are signs the ruling party may want to backtrack on its charter amendment mission as it gets along with the old guard. It's no exaggeration to say the party hardly had a firm stance on the matter from the beginning.
So, with several hurdles to the wholesale charter rewrite, House President Wan Muhamad Noor Matha has proposed that parliament return to the section-by-section amendment.
He said there are 17 charter rewrite proposals and the PP's wholesale amendment focussing on the Section 256 revamp. This will be up for further debate.
As the ruling party, Pheu Thai needs to do more to assure the public the new charter is not just a political pie in the sky but fulfilling its poll promises and being instrumental in creating a more democratic charter. The government should consider having three referendums if need be, and then proceed with the amendment process to ensure a better charter with a view to better politics.