Critics have lambasted the 173 selected members of the National Reform Council (NRC) tasked with 11 areas of reform for their affiliations with the military regime after a list of names was leaked to the media.
The process of choosing a National Reform Council began with this speech at the Royal Thai Army Club by coup leader and army chief, now Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha. (Reuters photos)
The Pheu Thai Party and red shirts have voiced concern that the National Council for Peace and Order's (NCPO) reform process will fail because the list is made up largely of regime sympathisers and lacks representation from a cross-section of groups in society.
Meanwhile, opponents of the previous government and members of the yellow-shirt group praised the NRC's composition, saying it comprises experts in various fields and is not dominated by the military.
In early September, Gen Prayut showed this booklet, which he said detailed the selection criteria for National Reform Council members.
The leaked list includes several former members of the anti-Thaksin Group of 40 Senators, such as Rosana Tositrakul, Kamnoon Sitthisamarn, Phaiboon Nititawan and Wanchai Sornsiri.
Academics on the council are noted sympathisers of the People's Democratic Reform Committee, including Charas Suwannamala and Chuchai Supawong.
Several journalists have also been selected to the NRC. Thai Journalists Association president Pradit Ruangdit was tapped, as was Manit Suksomjit, a veteran Thai Rath newspaper journalist.
Other prominent academics include Chai-Anan Samudavanija, Anek Laothamatas, Borwornsak Uwanno and Thianchai Kiranant.
There were also prominent figures who applied but were not chosen. Among them were Election Commissioner Somchai Srisutthiyakorn and former Department of Special Investigation chief Tarit Pengdith.
Mr Somchai said the NCPO has not chosen members of independent organisations because they are considered stakeholders — the reforms seek to overhaul independent bodies.
Mr Chai-Anan and Mr Thianchai, a former rector of Chulalongkorn University, are among those tipped for the post of NRC chairman.
The NCPO has tasked the NRC to reform the country in the areas of law and justice, local administration, national administration, politics, education, the economy, energy, public health and the environment, the mass media, social affairs, and a special category to deal with "other issues".
The NCPO has whittled the 173 members down from a large pool of candidates nominated by 11 screening committees. It is expected to pick another 77 from the provinces, bringing the total NRC membership to 250.
Pheu Thai member and former deputy prime minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul yesterday said the list of NRC members is a disappointment.
Several members are "the same old faces" and are "the same team as those working for the NCPO", Mr Surapong said.
He said this group will not bring change, and the reforms will be stuck in a set of old ideas. They will respond to the needs of what he called "the other side" at the expense of the public and the country, Mr Surapong said.
Instead of offering solutions, the reforms would create more problems. Eventually an elected government will need to step in to solve them, after which there will be a coup, trapping the country in a vicious cycle, Mr Surapong said.
Former Pheu Thai member Amnuay Khlangpha said several of the appointed NRC members are opponents of his party, particularly the Group of 40 Senators. And he offered dire predictions.
"I am not sure if the NCPO wants peace or a crisis. I'm afraid the reforms may end in failure," Mr Amnuay said.
Former Pheu Thai MP Worachai Hema urged Prime Minister and NCPO leader Prayut Chan-o-cha to make sure the reform council carries out its work in a neutral manner and said the justice system must be reformed in a way that ensures equal treatment under the law.
Former Democrat MP Atthawit Suwannaphakdi voiced concern that the reform council may only succeed in creating a new permanent constitution, while its reform task may face obstacles. One major obstacle to reform is the bureaucratic system, he said.
Currently, there are no political parties obstructing the reform process, but NRC members still have an uphill task. They must deal with civil servants to push for reforms in local administration, the police force and in the elections of provincial governors, Mr Atthawit said.
He said that if reform is to get off the ground, the government or the NCPO must dictate the NRC's agenda.
Praj Panchakhunathorn, a lecturer at Chulalongkorn University's faculty of arts, said it is not surprising that the NRC members share the NCPO's ideology; the NCPO would not be able to control them otherwise.
Green Group leader Suriyasai Katasila yesterday said if the leaked list is true, there is reason to hope that reform will succeed. He said the 173 include only 25 from the military, and all these are "academic military officers".
Mr Suriyasai said many prominent academics have also been chosen. Most importantly, he said, many members of the civic sector have also been named as NRC members. He agreed that members of independent organisations should be excluded from the NRC.
Mr Suriyasai said academics who have not been chosen as NRC members should be consulted. Their ideas and suggestions are still useful, he said.
But he noted that the NRC still lacks representation from the agricultural and labour sectors. The reform council still can plug this loophole, he said, by setting up a committee to gather their input.