Thailand's party-list candidacy carried on as scheduled

BANGKOK, December 24 (TNA) - The Election Commission of Thailand (EC) has insisted that the election agency will use the Thai-Japanese Stadium in Bangkok as the venue of party-list candidates' applications until December 27, 2013 as scheduled despite anti-government demonstrations. An election commissioner, Somchai Srisuthiyakorn, and EC Secretary-General Phuchong Nutrawong announced the stance on Tuesday, the second day of the party-list candidacy. In response to protesters of the anti-government People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) rally at all gates of the Thai-Japanese Stadium in Bangkok's Din Daeng area, Somchai acknowledged if party-list candidates are unable to file their applications, the election process will be obstructed and the EC will consult with the caretaker government the possibility to change the general election date, now set on February 2, 2014. PDRC demonstrators, led by Suthep Thaugsuban, a former deputy prime minister of the Democrat Party, were, however, marching from the Thai-Japanese Stadium back to their main rallying venue on Rajadamnoen Avenue in the capital on Tuesday afternoon. Meanwhile, Democrat Party Spokesman Chavanond Intarakomalyasut told journalists that his party will ask the EC to take action against Caretaker Prime Minister and Defence Minister Yingluck Shinawatra for abusing taxpayers' money by campaigning for votes during her ongoing upcountry trips. Yingluck, who was in Phetchabun Province on Tuesday morning, visited the 6,000-rai or 9.6-square-kilometer Huay Nam Chun Yai Reservoir, a royal development project, in Khao Kho District, aimed at relieving flooding and drought in the province. According to the caretaker prime minister, there are eight reservoir projects in Phetchabun,seven of them have been completely-constructed and the remaining one is in Wichian Buri District. The caretaker prime minister then visited Lao Ya School to inspect the implementation of her government's project on distributing tablet computers to pupils.(TNA)