'Sa-wang' Apologizes, Vote Buying Prep is Crime, Difficult to Catch if Undelivered

MGR Online•Politics•219d ago

Reader Briefing

Election Commission Secretary-General Sa-wang Boonmee apologized for communication errors regarding vote-buying laws, clarifying that preparation to buy votes is illegal even if not yet executed.

•Sa-wang Boonmee, Secretary-General of the Election Commission (EC), issued an apology for his recent statements on preventing vote buying.
•He clarified that according to the law, merely preparing to buy votes constitutes an offense.
•Sa-wang explained that while evidence for prepared vote distribution is hard to gather, the act of preparation itself is illegal.
•He admitted that his prior statements may have been brief or unclear, leading to public misunderstanding.

Overview

•On Jan 31, Sa-wang Boonmee, Secretary-General of the Election Commission (EC), apologized for communication issues regarding vote buying prevention.
•Sa-wang Boonmee's apology was due to public misunderstanding of his statements on the legality of vote buying preparation.
•Sa-wang Boonmee emphasized that Thai law stipulates that even preparing to buy votes is a criminal offense.
•Sa-wang Boonmee clarified that his previous remarks focused on the behavior of those intending to buy votes, not a full legal explanation.
•Sa-wang Boonmee explained that while preparing to distribute money for vote buying is difficult to catch without clear evidence, the act of preparation itself is illegal.
•Sa-wang Boonmee stated that if vote buyers proceed to distribute money, they are more likely to be caught due to EC's stringent measures.
•Jan 31, marked the date of Sa-wang Boonmee's clarifying statements and apology.
•The public had a misunderstanding of EC's stance on vote buying due to Sa-wang Boonmee's communication.

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Key Quotes

Sa-wang Boonmee

"Apologizes for causing social misunderstanding, due to poor communication."

ขออภัยที่ทำให้สังคมเข้าใจผิด ที่สื่อสารไม่ดีเอง

Sa-wang Boonmee

"This was actually about the behavior of those intending to buy votes, not explaining the law. The law stipulates that mere preparation for vote buying is already an offense."

จริงๆ เป็นการพูดถึงพฤติการณ์คนที่จะทำการซื้อเสียง ไม่ได้อธิบายกฎหมาย กฎหมายได้กำหนดว่าแค่จัดเตรียมการซื้อเสียงก็เป็นความผิดแล้ว

Sa-wang Boonmee

"The behavior preceding the purchase is preparing to distribute money. But the preparation is difficult to catch, meaning they have an easy opportunity to evade the law if evidence is unclear."

พฤติการณ์ก่อนซื้อคือการจัดเตรียมแจกเงิน แต่การจัดเตรียมมันจับได้อยาก นั้นหมายความว่าเขามีโอกาสเลี่ยงกฎหมายได้ง่าย ถ้าหลักฐานไม่ชัดเจน

Key Entities

Person

Sa-wang Boonmee(แสวง บุญมี)

Secretary-General of the Election Commission (EC) of Thailand, who issued clarifications and an apology regarding vote-buying laws.

Organization

Election Commission(สำนักงานคณะกรรมการการเลือกตั้ง)ℹ️

The governmental body responsible for overseeing elections in Thailand, whose policies on vote buying were discussed.