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Thai poll body to decide on disbanding ruling party

(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-08-19 10:56

BANGKOK - Thailand's Election Commission (EC) is due to decide on Tuesday whether to recommend that the ruling People Power Party (PPP) be disbanded for electoral fraud, the latest twist in three years of political turmoil.

However, the Thai-language Matichon newspaper quoted an EC source as saying the five commissioners were split on the issue, suggesting their ruling might be delayed beyond Tuesday.

Analysts say the Constitutional Court, which has the final say on the matter, is likely to follow the EC's findings, although it may take several months to implement any ruling.

If it finds against the PPP, at least 33 senior party leaders from Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee would automatically lose their jobs and be barred from politics for five years.

The case before the Election Commission stems from the guilty verdict handed down in July against a deputy PPP leader for vote fraud in December's election. He was also banned from politics for five years.

Under the constitution drawn up by the army after a 2006 coup, an entire party can be disbanded and all of its executives barred from politics if just one member of the party's leadership is found guilty of vote fraud.

Thai newspapers have reported that the PPP is preparing for the worst and lining up a new "shell" party to admit all its MPs, who might then be able to cobble together another coalition government.

If not, another election -- the fourth in four years -- would almost certainly follow.

Samak shrugged off speculation that he would call a snap election, saying on his weekend television show he would not give up but would "be steering the country to peace and unity".

The PPP won the most votes in the December general election, due largely to continuing support for Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted as Prime Minister in the 2006 coup.

Thaksin skipped bail last week and went into exile in London rather than face a corruption trial involving him and his wife. State prosecutors have begun the lengthy process of trying to extradite him.