<p dir="ltr">The chairman of the junta-appointed Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) has given a green light to raising the salary of government and parliament members, saying the plan will retain ‘good people’ in politics. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p dir="ltr">On 9 November 2016, Meechai Ruchuphan, Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC), expressed approval for a proposal from the National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA) to increase the salary of the Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, and members of parliament. &nbsp;</p>

<div>To prevent politicians from committing severe corruption, the death penalty will be enshrined in an organic law of the junta-backed draft charter.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>On 2 November 2016, Meechai Ruchuphan, the Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC), announced the CDC has been drafting the organic law for political parties — one of the most crucial laws of the junta-sponsored draft charter, <a href="http://news.voicetv.co.th/thailand/427947.html">reported</a> Voice TV. </div>

<p dir="ltr">The Thai Election Commissioner has confirmed the junta can legally dissolve parliament to resolve gridlock during the process of selecting a new Prime Minister, but questions whether such drastic measures would be worth it.</p>

<div> <div>Citing the 7 August referendum results, Thailand’s Constitutional Court has ruled that the junta-backed draft charter must give the junta-appointed senate the right to activate the special mechanism to allow an ‘outsider’ Prime Minister. </div></div>

<div>The president of Thailand’s statesmen have urged the junta to amend the draft charter to open a channel for constitutional military intervention during political deadlocks. The statesmen reasoned that the amendment would prevent Thailand from future coups.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>On Friday, 26 August 2016, Kriangsak Lekkla, the representative of Gen Saiyud Kerdphol, President of Thailand’s Statesmen, filed a petition to the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC), the junta-appointed charter drafter. </div>

<div> <div>The junta-appointed senate should have the right to propose Prime Ministerial candidates, said a spokesman for the junta’s lawmakers.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>On Tuesday, 23 August 2016, Jet Siratharanon, the spokesperson for the National Legislative Assembly (NLA), the junta’s lawmakers, revealed that the NLA have a unanimous stance on the issue of the controversial additional question, which was passed the 7 August referendum with a landslide. </div></div>

<div>In the aftermath of the 7 August referendum, junta supporters have strategically initiated efforts to ensure that Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, the current junta head, will be Thailand’s next ‘outsider’ Prime Minister.</div> <p></p>

<p dir="ltr">Thanks in part to the prospect of a return to elections, the junta-sponsored draft constitution has been approved by a majority vote via the controversial referendum. The attached question of whether an unelected-senate should be allowed to join the house of representatives in selecting the Prime Minister was also approved.</p>

<p>The Thai junta leader has said that the notorious Section 44 of the Interim Charter, which gives the regime absolute power, is still necessary to comfort people.</p>

<div> <div>The Chair of the Constitution Drafting Committee said the first general election under the junta-backed constitution, recently passed by referendum, might be held in early 2018 despite the junta’s strong promise that elections would at all costs be held in 2017. &nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><span>On Sunday, 7 August 2016, after the “Yes Vote” claimed a clear victory in the referendum, Meechai Ruchupan, Chair of Constitution Drafting Committee, told the media that the first general election under the new constitution was expected to be held in late 2017. </span></div></div>

<div>With only three days before the historic August referendum, many voters in the south of Thailand have yet to receive a full copy of the draft charter. A southern referendum watchdog said the booklets from the junta-appointed charter drafters distort the actual content of the draft.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>On Thursday, 4 August 2016, Mangsot Mate, President of Referendum Monitoring Groups in the Southern Border Provinces, told the media that most people in southern Thailand have not received the full version of the draft charter, which will be voted on in the 7 August referendum. </div>

<p dir="ltr">As Thailand approaches its monumental referendum, the potential for political conflict is high. What will happen after Sunday?</p> <p dir="ltr">Thailand’s constitution-drafting process has come to the crucial point — the referendum on the draft charter on 7 August. All arms of Thailand’s authoritarian regime are working in unison to ensure that the referendum will go smoothly and coerce an acceptance of the draft from Thais.</p>