Much progress has been made in the government’s efforts to amend the 2017 constitution, with more groups, including the opposition Move Forward Party (MFP), agreeing to have their say on Nov 2 as to what an ideal charter-drafting process should be, said Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai on Tuesday.
He was speaking in his capacity as chairman of the government’s committee tasked with studying and drafting fresh guidelines on conducting a referendum on the new charter-rewriting bid.
The Constitutional Court had previously ruled that an amendment to Section 256 of the constitution, which paves the way for establishing a charter drafting assembly, would involve replacing the current charter. As such, a referendum before and after the charter is redrawn is required, it ruled.
Two sub-committees have been formed under the panel, one to gauge opinions across various groups and the other to develop guidelines on the charter rewriting to ensure it will align with the court ruling, said Mr Phumtham, also a commerce minister.
The gathering of public opinions on the government’s proposal to amend the constitution, in particular, has achieved satisfactory progress, he said, adding that various groups have had their opinions heard already while more are set to communicate their thoughts and make suggestions.
Other than the MFP, several youth groups, university students’ clubs and civic groups such as the Assembly of the Poor have also agreed to attend a meeting with the sub-committee gathering public opinions on the constitution amendment proposal, he said.
The two sub-committees are to report back to the main committee once a month about their work progress, he added.
Senator Wanchai Sornsiri, serving as chairman of the Senate’s committee on political development and public participation, said the committee now expects to hear from the government’s sub-committee gathering public opinions on the charter-amendment proposal essential details of the government’s charter-rewriting bid.
The details include which parts of the constitution are earmarked for a rewrite, the exact composition of a new charter drafting assembly and, more importantly, the possible timeline of the amendment, Mr Wanchai said.
Senator Wanchai Sornsiri says the constitution will likely be problem-free when Section 272 expires in the first half of 2024. (Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya)
He said he was optimistic that a referendum, which will be conducted to formally gauge public opinions about the government’s charter amendment proposal, would not widen the country’s political polarisation as feared by some.
In his opinion, the current constitution will be problem-free when the controversial Section 272, which requires the Senate’s involvement in co-selecting a prime minister, expires in the first half of next year.
There will then be no need to amend any other parts of the charter except for the fact that it is perceived by critics as being the legacy of the military-installed regime, said the senator.