Future Forward Party (FFP) leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit has threatened to pursue legal action against the Election Commission (EC) for malfeasance and media outlets damaging his reputation, once the regime steps down from power.
He was speaking after a four-hour meeting with the EC yesterday to defend himself against shareholding violation allegations.
Mr Thanathorn said he will reserve his right to sue the poll agency for malfeasance in violation of Section 157 of the Criminal Code, as well as media outlets, which have ruined his reputation. He claimed that the EC's decision to launch a probe against him over shareholding violation claims was politically motivated.
"I am patient enough. I'll wait until the NCPO steps down from power and then will sue. The statute of limitations on cases under Section 157 is 15 years," Mr Thanathorn said.
FFP secretary-general Piyabutr Saengkanokkul said that the EC's probe may be illegal because the agency made allegations without giving Mr Thanathorn a chance to defend himself first.
Mr Piyabutr said the EC sent a notice to the house of Mr Thanathorn's mother on April 22 to summon her to testify before the EC on that day. Mr Piyabutr said Mr Thanathorn's mother received the notice at 1.45pm, but the document told her to meet with the EC at 10.30am on that day. "She could have only done so by using a time machine," Mr Piyabutr said.
The following day, April 23, the EC rushed to make allegations against Mr Thanathorn, Mr Piyabutr said. Activist Srisuwan Janya, secretary-general of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, petitioned the EC to investigate whether Mr Thanathorn was qualified to be an MP.
Mr Srisuwan claimed Mr Thanathorn applied to be an MP candidate while still holding shares in V-Luck Media Co. This could constitute a breach of Section 98 (3) of the constitution, which bars owners or shareholders of media and/or publishing companies from applying to be MPs. The EC said evidence showed Mr Thanathorn owned 675,000 shares in the media company. He has seven days to defend himself after receiving the EC's document informing him of the allegations.
Mr Thanathorn has dismissed the complaint and insisted he and his wife had transferred their shares to his mother on Jan 8 after returning to Bangkok from Buri Ram, where he was campaigning on the same day. Some critics have alleged that Mr Thanathorn transferred his media shares to his mother on March 21, citing a report submitted to the Department of Business Development.
On Monday, Mr Thanathorn posted on Facebook copies of three tickets which he said he received for speeding while on his way from Buri Ram to Bangkok to back his claim that he completed the transfer on Jan 8. Meanwhile, the shareholding violation fiasco has also now spread to the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP).
Pheu Thai deputy leader Plodprasop Suraswadi said he had told the party's legal team to petition the EC today to disqualify Charnwit Wiphusiri, a PPRP winning poll candidate in Bangkok's Constituency 15 for alleged shareholdings in a media company.
Chusak Sirinil, chief of Pheu Thai's legal team, said that any poll candidates of the PPRP needed approval by the PPRP executive board. In light of this, the PPRP's executive board was also deemed have broken the law by sending an unqualified candidate to stand in the election, Mr Chusak said.
