Parliament could not punish an MP seen looking at an "inappropriate" photo on his phone during a House meeting, because it was a personal matter, Speaker Chuan Leekpai said on Thursday.
However, if a complaint was lodged, parliament could consider whether the MP had breached the code of ethics for parliamentarians, Mr Chuan said.
Palang Pracharath MP for Chon Buri Ronnathep Anuwat was spotted by reporters looking at a photo of a naked woman on his phone while attending a meeting of the House on Wednesday to debate the government budget.
Mr Chuan said he would warn the MP in question to be more careful. He had previously told MPs to be careful what they do because the media is watching them.
However, he personally viewed the incident as a personal matter and not a contravention of parliamentary regulations. Therefore, the parliament could not punish the MP.
In the past, no complaints had been lodged regarding MPs’ looking at inappropriate photos in parliament. There were only complaints about MPs’ wearing inappropriate clothing in parliament, he said.
Mr Ronnathep on Thursday claimed he was beng targetted by political rivals intent on discrediting him.
Media reports that he was looking at a nude photo had badly affected him and his work. People now believed he used his mobile phone to look at photos of naked women, and this was stressful.
In fact, it was not what happened, he asserted. He was set up by a political rival.
He had received a message on his mobile phone seeking help while he was attending the House meeting on Wednesday. He opened the message, unaware it contained a nude photo.
The message was asking for money to buy food. When he saw the nude photo, he immediately deleted the message and the photo, Mr Ronnathep said.
He believed he was politically defamed, and declared that he had many political opponents.