The Democrat Party wants to woo investors by dusting off its plan to transform the commercial district of Hat Yai in Songkhla into an economic powerhouse.
Its economic team had initiated a plan to seek the enactment of a special law to upgrade Hat Yai into an economic boom town that can rival Singapore and Hong Kong, according to Nipon Boonyamanee, the party's deputy leader and election director.
The party has pledged to implement the plan if it returns to government.
It also stressed the need for the government to generate revenue. A way to achieve this is to link up with major free trade areas (FTAs) as the party, which supervises the Commerce Ministry, negotiates deals through economic cooperation.
The Democrat Party's goal is to engage with 27-30 countries through FTAs which will accelerate exports and create revenue streams for the country.
Increasing exports means more tax to be collected from exporters, which augments revenue to be injected into the economic system, said Mr Nipon.
The party also reiterated its campaign promises which include offering a two-million-baht cash infusion into every village and community nationwide.
Orange shirts
The "orange" political movement holds a misguided view on how to reform the country, according to a senior member of the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP).
In an apparent attack on the Move Forward Party (MFP), PPRP deputy leader Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn noted political conflicts have been more pronounced, especially in the lead-up to the May 14 election.
"The newcomer orange shirts are even worse than the red and yellow shirts," he said, referring to the colour-coded conflict.
Red shirts are known to be mainly loyal supporters of the Pheu Thai Party, while the yellow shirts are monarchist groups. The "orange shirts", meanwhile, support a liberal democratic cause, and orange is also the MFP's colour of choice.
The "orange shirts" are eager to tackle the country's problems by pushing for major changes right at their sources. However, Mr Chaiwut said he and the orange shirts see the roots of the problems differently.
"In my view, the sources of problems are corrupt politicians who fight for vested interests. The problems have nothing to do with the nation, religions, or the monarchy [the pillar institutions]," he said.
Opposing dissolution
Dissolving a political party over election-related undertakings benefits no one, said Bhumjajthai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul.
"Our party doesn't support a dissolution of any party," he said, explaining that election-related affairs are part and parcel of democracy.
Mr Anutin added a violation of election law is committed by an individual member or members of a party, so the entire party should not be held culpable and punished for it.
Responding to a recent statement by Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, chief strategist of the Seri Ruam Thai Party, that at least four major parties may face the prospect of dissolution, Mr Anutin said it was a matter of opinion.
Also yesterday, Chumsai Sriyapai, deputy secretary-general of the Pheu Thai Party, criticised activist Srisuwan Janya for petitioning the Election Commission (EC) to probe the party over the 10,000-baht digital wallet handout scheme.
He said the EC has been rather enthusiastic about speeding up its scrutiny of party election policies to see if they defy election restrictions, which may be grounds for dissolving some parties.
Electoral policies introduced by parties do not carry enough weight to warrant a party dissolution as they are pledges which, when executed, would serve people across the population.
Election pooper warning
Employers are liable for a jail term if they prevent their employees from going to vote on advance voting day or on Election Day, the EC warned yesterday.
Under the Election of MPs Act, employers who obstruct or refuse to allow their employees to vote at a general election are subject to a jail term of up to two years, a maximum fine of 40,000 baht, or both.
The legal condition is applicable for advance voting on May 7 and on Election Day on May 14.
Meanwhile, EC chairman Ittiporn Boonpracong explained the mix-up in campaign numbers of Pheu Thai Party and Thailand's Future Party candidates on documents distributed to Thai voters in the United Kingdom has been rectified.
The EC has looked into the matter and found the mistake was made during document preparation by the EC's Bangkok office before the documents were mailed to the Thai embassy in the UK for distribution.
