February 1, 2014

At 13:00 hrs. Mr.Tharit Pengdit, Director-General, the Department of Special Investigations, briefed the press on the outcome of the meeting of the Center For Maintaining Peace and Order (CMPO) earlier in the day, gist as follows: 

The CMPO wishes to assure the public that the election on 2 February will be a legal path leading to reform. To ensure security for voters, the CMPO has deployed units of police and military personnel at polling stations in Bangkok as well as mobile rapid-response units on standby at strategic venues. For provincial areas, the CMPO has coordinated with the Royal Thai Police and the Army Regional Commands to provide personnel at polling stations. For traffic and security-related information, the public may call 1599 or 1197. 

Exercising the right to vote in this election not only helps maintain democracy in the country but is part of the reform process, as the election would bring in a new government with the power to legally carry out reform. The call by the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) to demonstrate on the streets is in fact an obstruction to the election which violates other's rights, and those who participate in such protests could face penalties. The public may also report any act of election obstruction by calling 1599. 

In response to an interview by Mr.Somchai Srisuthiyakorn, a member of the Election Committee (EC) on the cancellation of the election, the CMPO would like to inform the EC on two points. First, the EC should solve the problem in the three southern border provinces where ballots are still blocked at several post offices by members of PDRC, by sending new ballots or finding other means to carry out the election. Second, the EC could not claim that obstruction of ballot distribution in some areas is a cause for cancellation of the election, as most areas of the country have completed preparations and are ready for the election.