Politician Demands Justice Minister Explain Election Fraud Case

On July 9 at 10:40 a.m., the House of Representatives met with Speaker Sophon Saram presiding. Pricha Wattrasindhu, list MP and deputy leader of the Pheu Thai party, posed an urgent question to Justice Minister Rutthapol Naowarut regarding Special Case No. 24/2568 under investigation by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI). Pricha argued that what is commonly called the "election fraud case" should more accurately be termed an "election scam" because the alleged conduct involves not merely organizing candidate networks for vote-swapping, but using money and other benefits to hire people to register as candidates and hire voters to cast ballots to gain state power. He noted the case is currently under review by the Election Commission (EC) and DSI, and requested the minister explain the details of the fraud, money trails, and amounts involved. Speaker Sophon cautioned Pricha to use appropriate language rather than provocative terms, citing parliamentary rules. Minister Rutthapol responded that the election fraud case was accepted as a special case on March 10, 2568 under money laundering charges, with testimony from one complainant and 753 witnesses. He said eight people filed complaints with interconnected money details, currently under investigation. Regarding the principal charge of joint money laundering under Section 77 of the Constitution Drafting Act on Elections, or the election fraud case itself, this remains under consideration by the Election Commission, which has yet to make a ruling, so he cannot disclose details. Rutthapol further noted parliament rules Section 151 stating ministers must attend in person, but the article has three subsections—the third allows ministers to decline to answer on grounds of national interest or security. He suggested MPs should also study related laws restricting his ability to comment while cases are pending. Rutthapol then played a clip of Pricha's July 2 remarks questioning the urgency of raising the two-year-old case, noting it had not been a pressing issue and the public showed little interest. However, the clip revealed that Pricha's previous statement about forex money laundering cases had prompted the current inquiry, based on media reports. This drew protests from Pheu Thai MPs that the minister's explanation strayed from the actual question, wasting parliament's time until the 15-minute response period expired. Speaker Sophon ruled he had informed the minister of the remaining time but could not compel any particular response. Pricha then presented audio clips allegedly from Nakhon Phanom province referencing connections to certain parties in the election fraud case.