EC under fire for broken livestream promise
Yingcheep Atchanont, the manager of Internet Dialogue on Law Reform (iLaw), unleashed a scathing critique against the Election Commission (EC) for failing to live up to its promise of livestreaming the crucial final round of senatorial election voting.
“The EC had publicly promised that observers could follow the procedure on CCTV streamed from the halls. What we found, however, is that the feed had no sound at all, preventing us from following the procedures.”
The so-called broadcast from the convention halls displayed only a single, fixed angle, rendering the entire process opaque to the eager observers. Yingcheep lamented that neither he nor the other observers could witness the score calling or the counting, raising concerns about transparency.
The iLaw manager highlighted a significant discrepancy, pointing out that while there were 20 CCTV cameras stationed in the various voting rooms, none were actively streaming any footage. This lack of coverage left many in the dark about the proceedings, further fuelling frustration.
Compounding the issue was the sheer number of people keen to observe the senatorial elections. Approximately 1,000 individuals showed up, but the observation rooms were woefully inadequate to accommodate such a crowd. The promised live feed was supposed to bridge this gap, but its failure only exacerbated the situation, reported Thai PBS World.
“About 1,000 people came to observe the senatorial elections, but the observation rooms could not accommodate all of them. Therefore, they should have been able to watch the process via the feed promised by the EC but, so far, they cannot.”
In related news, the EC issued a stern warning to Senate election candidates regarding adherence to regulations as the final phase of voting takes place today. Some 2,995 candidates, who cleared the provincial-level selection process on June 16, are competing for 200 seats at Mueang Thong Thani in Nonthaburi. The official results will be announced on July 2.
