Officials across the country are drumming up campaigns to encourage voting on the draft constitution in a referendum on Sunday.
With only one week to go, officials have accelerated their efforts to raise awareness of the key event to meet the target set by the Election Commission (EC) on seeing 80% or 40.4 million of 50.5 million eligible voters cast ballots on the draft charter.
In Bangkok, district officials continued rallies on the referendum on Bangkok streets. Outside Bangkok, provincial and local election officials hit the roads in their areas with placards to remind voters about the referendum.
Suchart Panprom, the EC director in Ayutthaya, was aided by five elephants from the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace and Royal Kraal to walk in the old capital with Hanuman, the literary character used as the mascot for the referendum.
The referendum starts from 8am to 4pm on Sunday. The unofficial result in Bangkok will be known by 8pm and the unofficial nationwide outcome about one hour later.
Students hold posters during a campaign ahead of the referendum in Ayutthaya on Monday. (Reuters photo)
Bangkok EC chief Somphob Rangapsuk declared that all 50 districts in the capital was ready for the vote and officials to be stationed at all polling units will check their booths, ballots and ballot boxes on the eve of the referendum.
Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda said all ministry officials have been ordered to render full support to the EC in holding charter forums and monitoring the situations leading up to the polling day.
The sign of Banmaphraotondeaw School in Nong Chik district in Pattani is sprayed with a message against the constitution.
But not everything went smoothly.
In Pattani's Nong Chik district, the sign of Banmaphraotondeaw School was sprayed with a message against the constitution.
But Col Piyapong Klinphan, a spokesman for the National Council for Peace and Order, and national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda said there were no signs of violence ahead of the referendum day.
There were no reports of specific areas to be closely watched by the police, Pol Gen Chakthip said.
