Asked if there had been government interference, Gen Prawit said, “No, no, there was no order from the junta at all, none. The NLA just proceeded with the matter following its procedures.”Nor would the candidates’ rejection affect plans for local elections “for now”, he said. In a closed-door meeting yesterday (February 22), the NLA voted overwhelmingly to reject all seven candidates put forward for the commission. The law requires that candidates receive at least 125 votes out of a possible 248 votes in the NLA to become election commissioners. NLA president Pornpetch Wichitcholchai maintained that the initial candidates’ rejection would not affect the government’s election “roadmap”.

Source: The Nation Bangkok February 23, 2018 05:10 UTC