Keeping things clean

Photo: Election commission chairman Apichart Sukhagganond

Election fraud has long been a problem here in Thailand, particularly in regards to what the Bangkok Post describes as the “scourge of vote buying”. In many parts of the country, voters expect to trade their vote in exchange for cash, valuables or other benefits offered by an election candidate or, in most cases, by a canvasser. The process has become increasingly more sophisticated over the years, making it difficult to detect.

Election fraud is not limited to cash giveaways to voters. It also includes purchasing candidates who have the potential to win parliamentary seats, or worse yet, whole groups of candidates. Again, since the wheeling and dealing is done out of public view, it is very difficult to stamp out. Voter apathy, too, can be a problem. The fewer people who come out to vote, the more likely vote-buying will be successful. If, however, there is a very large turnout, parties will not be able to afford to buy enough votes to ensure victory.

The government organisation with the chief responsibility to crack down on election fraud, of course, is the independent government agency known as the Election Commission (EC). According to the Bangkok Post, the basic job of the EC is simple and clear. “It must organise the vote, monitor the campaigns, and transparently expose and prosecute cheating.”

Above all, the EC commissioner and the thousands of people it has assisting it must be impartial and fair. Unfortunately, this time around, the EC’s neutrality has been called into question. The EC has been accused of having a hidden agenda, of trying to stage-manage the election to prevent the PPP from winning enough seats to take the lead in forming the next government.

fraud – the crime of international deceiving someone or cheating in order to gain an advantage or benefit การฉ้อโกง การหลอกลวง เล่ห์เพทุบาย
scourge – something that causes a lot of trouble or harm โรคระบาด การลงโทษ
sophisticated – complicated and advanced in design or planning ซับซ้อน
detected – noticed, discovered or found out จับได้ พบได้
cash giveaways – การแจกเงิน
wheeling and dealing – using clever or slightly dishonest methods to gain an advantage ใช้ลูกล่อลูกชน
stamp out – to end something bad or unpleasant by taking strong action ยุติ, ดับ
apathy – a feeling of having no interest in or enthusiasm about something ความไม่สนใจ อารมณ์เบื่อ
afford – to have enough money to be able to pay for something มีเงิน/ทุนพอ
crack down on – to start dealing with someone or something much more strictly จัดการ, ลงมือปราบปราม
monitor – to regularly check something or watch someone in order to find out what is happening จับตา เฝ้าระวัง ตรวจตรา
transparently – openly; having nothing hidden or secret อย่างโปร่งใส
expose – to make something publicly known because you believe it is illegal or dishonest ตีแผ่ เปิดเผย
prosecute – to official accuse someone of a crime and to try to prove them guilty in a court of law ดำเนินคดี ฟ้องร้อง ซักฟอก
impartial – fair; not connected to or influenced by one particular person or group เป็นกลาง ไม่เข้าข้างฝ่ายใด ยุติธรรม
neutrality – the state of not supporting either side in a competition, disagreement, war, etc. ความเป็นกลาง
called into question – to make something seem less certain ตั้งข้อสงสัย
hidden agenda – วาระซ่อนเร้น
stage-manage – to organise something in a way that it seems natural when, in fact, it is planned จัดฉาก

---

In one of its most controversial announcements, the EC issued guidelines that would bar the banned TRT executives from getting on the stage at campaign rallies, appearing in candidates' campaign photographs, engaging in political parties' teleconferencing, serving as advisers to parties and holding membership of political parties. Even rival politicians quickly condemned this move as a violation of the banned executives’ political rights.

EC chairman Apichart Sukhagganond has denied this, insisting that the guidelines were not targeted at any specific political parties. He said the former TRT leaders had the right to speak in public but that they might face legal action if they did so on behalf of parties or if they criticise the EC.

Meanwhile, it seems to be business as usual on the campaign trail. The independent watchdog organisation P-Net, which has refused to assist the EC which it regards as tainted, says vote-buying is rampant and that candidates are blatantly ignoring the 1.5 million-baht ceiling for campaign spending.

bar – to officially say that someone must not do something or that something must not happen สกัดกั้น กั้น ขวาง
banned – officially prevented from doing something ห้าม ห้างอย่างเด็ดขาด
condemned – criticised severely ประณาม
violation – an action that is goes against a law, agreement, principle, etc. การกระทำผิดกฎหมาย
targeted – intended to attack someone or something ตั้งเป้า เล็ง มุ่ง
on behalf of – as a representative of ในนามของ ในฐานะของ
campaign trail – the events and activities that are part of an election campaign กิจกรรมในการรณรงค์หาสียง
watchdog – an organisation or person that works to stop people from doing illegal things กลุ่มจับตาประชาธิปไตย
tainted – spoiled by an unpleasant quality or feature มัวหมอง มีมลทิน แปดเปื้อน
rampant – existing, happening or spreading in an uncontrolled way รุกลาม อาละวาด กำเริบ รุนแรงจนควบคุมไว้ไม่ได้
blatantly – in an obvious or open way โจ่งแจ้ง โอ้อวด อึกทึก
ignoring – deliberately failing to pay attention to เพิกเฉย เอาหูไปนาเอาตาไปไร่
ceiling – an upper limit เพดาน ขีดจำกัด

Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 05:35 AM