By elections: No need for Banjong to resign

[StrontiumDog]

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...jong-to-resign

Suthep: No need for Banjong to resign

• Published: 4/11/2010 at 01:13 PM
• Online news:

It is not necessary for Boonjoing Wongtrairat to resign as deputy interior minister before running in a by-election, Democrat Party secretary-general Suthep Thaugsuban said on Thursday.

Mr Boonjong and five other MPs have lost their House seats after the Constitution Court on Wednesday ruled that their shareholdings in private companies were unconstitutional.

However, all of them, except one who was elected in the party-list system, can still run in a by-election to be called to fill the vacant House seats.

Mr Suthep said Mr Banjong does not have to follow his practice by resigning from the cabinet post before running in a by-election, adding that his and Mr Banjoing's cases are different.

The Democrat secretary-general said he resigned as deputy prime minister because he was responsible for national security affairs and acted as government's manager, so it would be inappropriate for him to hold on to the post.

Mr Suthep was among the MPs found by the Election Commission to have violated the constitution regarding shareholdings. After the EC forwarded the case to the Constitution Court, he resigned his House seat for not wanting to fight the case in court to concentrate in his work as deputy prime minister.

When a Democrat MP was disqualified and a House seat in Surat Thani became vacant, he resigned the cabinet post to run in the Oct 30 by-election and was re-elected.

Concerning this matter, Mr Boonjong said he would wait for the Bhumjaithia Party to decide, probably next week, whether or not he should resign to run in the by-election.