The Election Commission says its investigation into last year’s Senate election is on schedule, with a special committee now examining complaints of electoral law violations.
The examination is the first part of a four-step process, EC secretary-general Sawaeng Boonmee said on Saturday.
The process should be completed by July 10, within the one-year timeframe stipulated by the law, he said. The deadline for submission is July 9 — leaving about one month and 20 days remaining, he said.
Mr Sawaeng said the timeline was an internal measure used by the commission to expedite the process and keep all parties informed of progress without affecting the investigation.
Once the committee submits its report, the EC will have its own timeframe for deliberation.
“There was no deadline specified in the laws the EC was required to follow. However, we set a one-year deadline for the evidence collection process,” said Mr Sawaeng.
He admitted the election was complex, with district, provincial and national voting rounds, each of which featured candidates voting within their own occupational groups and then for candidates in groups other than their own. As a result, the evidence collection process was lengthy.
Mr Sawaeng the investigative committee was ordered not to intervene in the results.
Asked about allegations of vote-rigging, he said the EC has followed the court’s instructions.
The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) is conducting a parallel investigation, focusing mainly on allegations of money-laundering and vote-rigging.
Dozens of senators have complained that the DSI has no business intruding on the turf of the EC. However, the latter has said the case is so complex, with so many players, that it welcomed help from the DSI.
The allegations of irregularities are believed directed against “blue bloc” senators, a reference to a large group linked to the Bhumjaithai Party, the second-largest party in the government coalition.
The final Senate vote on June 26 produced some highly unusual results, notably a disproportionate number of winners from provinces where Bhumjaithai is strong electorally.
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