Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha defended the role of a regime-appointed panel to shortlist 400 candidates for the Senate Tuesday and insisted he will be the one to make the final selection.
The selection committee headed by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon has the public's best interests at heart and will choose senators from diverse backgrounds, he said.
He declined to name the panel members.
The premier's comments came in response to public calls for him to disclose the names amid criticism the 250-member Senate, which will join the House of Representatives in choosing the next prime minister, would serve as his support base.
"We shouldn't allow old problems to resurface. We've had an elected Senate and an appointed Senate. So, let's try this one: during the five years [of the Senate's term], we'll see changes in the country," he said.
The final shortlist will be completed by Saturday, he added.
The regime will pick 194 names from a list of 400. Another 50 will be drawn from a shortlist of 200 candidates in a process supervised by the Election Commission.
