Thai political parties discuss election issues

BANGKOK, March 28 (TNA) - Representatives of 53 political parties have discussed election-related issues and called on the Election Commission of Thailand (EC) to organize national reform forums. Surathin Pijarn, leader of the New Democrat Party, initiated the meeting, held at the Royal Police Cadet Academy in Bangkok's adjacent Nakhon Pathom Province on Friday morning, in which representatives of Thai political parties, including coalition parties, participated. The meeting was organized after the Constitution Court recently ruled to nullify Thailand's general election on February 2, 2014. The participants discussed the caretaker government's issuance of a new royal decree for the next election to be submitted for His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej's approval and a proposal for the EC to organize national reform forums. After the meeting, the participating political parties announced they agreed that a new general election should be held as soon as possible and a new royal decree should be issued to set a fresh national poll date within 45-60 days after the court ruling. Issara Wongkusolkit, Chairman of the Board of Trade of Thailand, said, in the meantime, that the private sector wished the new election and the new government would happen quickly so that government budgets could be disbursed and the national economy could progress. Issara forecast if the new Thai government was formed in the third quarter of this year, the Thai economy could grow by 2.5-3 per cent this year, but if the government formation was further delayed, the Thai economy would expand by less than 2.5 per cent this year, proposing that conflicting parties enter into a negotiation and an interim government administer the nation and work out a national reform process in a year. Meanwhile, Thailand's Democrat Party held its annual meeting although the consideration for whom would run in the next general election was not on the agenda. The Democrat annual meeting was attended by the party's executives, former Members of Parliament (MPs), members of the Bangkok Metropolitan Council, and members of the District Office Council, but leader of the party, Abhisit Vejjajiva, was not present due to his falling accident at his residence earlier this week, which caused him to undergo a surgery on his right collar bone on March 27 and he has, thus, advsed by his doctors to temporarily suspend his activities until he fully recovers. (TNA)