The Move Forward Party (MFP) yesterday submitted three charter amendment bills seeking to mitigate the impact of the military regime's orders, prevent future coups and abolish the junta-backed 20-year national strategy.
MFP list-MP Parit Wacharasindhu said that even though the Pheu Thai-led government pledged to push for the rewriting of a new charter, the process could take up to two years. The MFP deems it necessary to amend certain sections simultaneously to address urgent issues.
According to Mr Parit, the three bills are intended to mitigate the effects of the 2014 putsch, and political parties are anticipated to support them. The bills will be submitted to the Lower House for deliberation before being passed them to the Senate.
Of the three bills, one proposes abolishing Section 279 of the charter, which says all announcements and orders of the now-defunct National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) and its leader are lawful and constitutional.
If the section is abolished, people affected by the NCPO's actions can challenge the junta's orders that are deemed to have violated people's civil rights and liberties, he said.
Mr Parit said the MFP will also push for the enactment of another law seeking to cancel the NCPO's orders that are considered not beneficial to the public. The party proposed the bill last July, but it was classified as a finance-related bill, which means it requires the prime minister's approval to proceed.
Another bill seeks to prevent and counter future coups, he said.
It will allow state officials to disobey orders from those attempting to seize power and prohibit courts from recognising a coup as a means of establishing a legitimate government. It will ban an amnesty for coup makers while allowing people to bring a treason charge against them.
"The party will advocate for anti-coup measures in the constitution, push for related laws such as military reforms, and raise public awareness that conflicts should be resolved through political mechanisms," he said.
Mr Parit said that the last bill proposes abolishing the 20-year national strategy and the national reform plan, which fall under Sections 16 and 65 of the constitution.
While the party agrees that the country needs a long-term strategy for development, the current one was formulated during the military regime without sufficient public input, he added.