Petition planned to halt Senate’s appointment powers amid election probe
Integrity of appointments questioned as Senator seeks temporary halt to Senate's authority over independent agencies
A Thai Senator plans to petition the Constitutional Court for a temporary suspension of the Senate’s authority to approve appointments to independent state agencies. Finalisation of the petition is expected by today, May 19, amid ongoing investigations into the legitimacy of senatorial elections.
The petition, once complete, will be presented to Senate Speaker Mongkol Surasajja for submission to the Constitutional Court, with the backing of at least 20 senators. It requests that all 200 senators temporarily cease involvement in approving officials for independent organisations due to alleged collusion among senators.
This includes forming vetting committees, evaluating candidates’ ethical standards and qualifications, and voting on appointments.
Senator Nantana Nantavaropas expressed concerns that more than half of the senators might face charges, questioning the legitimacy of their election. She highlighted a potential conflict of interest if senators under investigation participate in appointing leaders of agencies responsible for verifying their legitimacy. This could undermine transparency and accountability.
She warned that if the approval processes continue despite these concerns, decisions by independent agencies might be contested as invalid if those approving them are later deemed unqualified.
Senator Nantana advocates for the suspension of these duties until investigations are resolved, to ensure the integrity of the approval process.
The petition is set to be submitted before the Senate meeting on May 29, with Senator Nantana confident of securing the necessary support.
When questioned about whether the petition would address potential loss of membership for senators due to political affiliations, Bangkok Post reported that Senator Nantana revealed that no final decision had been made.
Following a separate investigation, the Constitutional Court dismissed allegations that state officials facilitated former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s hospital stay during his prison sentence.
The petition accused officials, including the Justice Minister and corrections department leaders, of improperly allowing Thaksin to serve his sentence at Police General Hospital (PGH) instead of prison.
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