The People’s Party has called on the incoming government and the newly elected parliament to honour the outcome of the Feb 8 referendum and move forward with drafting a new constitution, warning that any delay would ignore the public mandate.
Natthawut Buapratum, a party-list MP and former chairman of a House committee studying constitutional amendments, said on Tuesday he was surprised by reports that the next government — expected to be led by the Bhumjaithai Party — may not prioritise constitutional reform.
The referendum vote on Feb 8 showed 58.6% of voters support a new charter, while 30.5% favour keeping the existing constitution and 8.3% abstained. The remainder consisted of “no vote” or spoiled ballots.
Mr Natthawut said the government and parliament were obliged to respect the public consensus. The People’s Party, he added, was prepared to push forward an amendment bill to establish a mechanism for drafting a new charter.
“The People’s Party thanks the 21,621,638 citizens who voted in favour of a new constitution,” he said. “The result fulfils the requirements of the Referendum Act and represents a public consensus that goes beyond supporters of any particular political party.”
He acknowledged that more than 11 million voters opposed the proposal and that over three million did not express a view, highlighting how some people still harbour concerns about the format, substance and process of drafting a new charter, as well as its ability to address structural political, social and economic problems affecting the public.
Mr Natthawut said all sectors must help explain the process and ensure meaningful public participation. Further referendums would ultimately be required — one on the amendment enabling the drafting process and another on the final draft.
But drafting a new charter cannot start without first amending the existing document, notably Section 256, in line with Constitutional Court rulings.
Disagreements in the last parliament between the House of Representatives and the Senate over the number of senators required to approve the process contributed to the dissolution of parliament and the calling of a new election.
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