The powers that be should not regard political parties as though they are rivals by continuing to limit their roles and spell out the 20-year national development plan, according to Pheu Thai Party core figure Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan.
No matter how many laws are passed to control political parties, they will not sever the deep ties between politicians and the people, particularly those in the provinces, she said on Saturday.
The former public health minister under the Thaksin Shinawatra administration insisted that although out of office as MPs, many politicians can still serve the people in other capacities.
Khunying Sudarat was referring to the draft organic bill, one of the 10 draft laws being wrapped up by the Constitution Drafting Committee.
Last week, Kanin Boonsuwan, a member of Pheu Thai's legal team, took a swipe at the draft organic law on political parties which deals with parties' membership registration. He described it as an attempt to thwart the parties.
Under the proposed clause, parties are required to register their members and hand the registration list to the Election Commission chairman, who serves as the registrar of parties, within 90 days of the approval of the draft law.
Mr Kanin said the major parties will encounter problems checking and verifying details within the allotted time frame, given the magnitude of the membership.
Under the military regime's rule, parties have not been allowed to hold any political activities, he said, adding the 90-day timeframe would be a trap for parties.
Khunying Sudarat said those in power should not be suspicious of political parties and regard them as rivals. Rather, they should listen to opinions from all sides and make preparations for a free and fair election expected at the end of 2017.
Politicians have been obeying the rules restricting their activities knowing full well they were unfair to them. But they chose to comply to keep the political atmosphere calm, she said.
Pheu Thai and the Democrats, the two largest parties, have called on the National Council for Peace and Order to lift the ban on political activities so parties can hold meetings and prepare for the next election.
Amnuay Klangpa, the former Pheu Thai MP for Lop Buri, said the 90-day limit was too short for party membership verification and the parties would not have sufficient time to ready themselves for the election.
Meanwhile, Khunying Sudarat also urged the regime to unveil the 20-year national development plan stated in the constitution.
She said the plan affects everyone and yet no one has seen details of it. All stakeholders should be able to debate the plan as input from experts would help improve its contents and people will feel a sense of co-ownership of the plan.
Khunying Sudarat said she feared implementing the plan without prior consultation with the people could trigger a new round of social conflict.
It was reported that parties are concerned the development plan will impose a straitjacket on future elected governments, restricting their ability to freely make decisions on the running of the country.
Politicians are concerned they risk facing legal action if the law governing the national plan is enacted and they subsequently fail to stick to the plan as specified.