Five Phuket names to be sent to Bangkok today for NRC selection

PHUKET: The Phuket Election Commission (PEC) yesterday released the names of candidates vying for a chance to represent the island on the yet-to-be created National Reform Council (NRC).

“A special provincial committee will submit the names of five final candidates from the list to the Election Commission [EC] in Bangkok,” PEC Director Kitipong Thiengkunakrit told the Phuket Gazette.

The five names will be sent to the EC today, he confirmed.

“If the EC approves of the candidates, the names will be passed on to the National Council for Peace and Order [NCPO], which in turn will select just one candidate from each province to present to HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej for approval.”

The NRC will comprise 250 members, Mr Kitipong told the Gazette last month (story here).

Of the 250 members, 77 will be selected directly from each province and the remaining 173 will comprise members from 11 reform groups, reported The Nation (story here).

The PEC released the names of 19 Phuket candidates yesterday, but confirmed after the fact that two of the candidates had dropped out of the race to represent Phuket since registration closed on September 2.

The list of 17 who are still in the running, along with the two that have withdrawn, includes Phuket’s first and only female Vice Governor Sommai Prijasilpa, who is set to retire from her post at the end of the month.

The list is as follows:

1. Kittiporn Thongtan
2. Cherdchai Wongseree
3. Don Limnantapisit
4. Songwut Hongyok (withdrawn)
5. Tienchai Tiyapongpattana
6. Nikhom Thongchaem
7. Sub Lt Boonlert Jumpa
8. Buntoon Thongtan
9. Phat Jankaew
10. Winai Chidchiew, Karon Headman (Kamnan)
11. Wisut Tantikul
12. Weerawat Janpen, former Phuket Vice Governor
13. Somsak Rattanasaenyanupap
14. Sommai Prijasilpa PhD, current Phuket Vice Governor
15. Subsak Tangwanit
16. Sutee Lianudom
17. Supoj Sanguankittipan
18. Surin Bamrungphol PhD (withdrawn), a founder and President of the Phuket Anti-Corruption Network
19. Samphan Singsrida

Mr Surin, one of two people who withdrew from the race, explained to the Gazette his reason for stepping out of the running.

“I think there is a qualified candidate in the list that is well-suited for the position, so I withdrew my candidacy,” he said.

“However, I was nominated by a Phuket non-profit organization and am still hoping to win a spot on the NRC in the group of 173 that will be appointed to one of the 11 reform groups.”

— Chutharat Plerin