Prachachat MP Accuses Bhumjaithai of Crippling Parliamentary Oversight
Prachachat MP Ratchanok Srinok accused Bhumjaithai MP Supachai Jaisamut of attempting to dismantle parliamentary oversight by pushing to limit committee investigative powers. The clash follows a House Speaker meeting with 35 committee chairs after Supachai complained that a Law Committee summons to a Bhumjaithai MP bypassed proper procedure. Ratchanok warned the move would leave the opposition with no mechanism to scrutinize the government, which already controls the Senate, House majority, executive branch, and influence over independent agencies.
Prachachat party-list MP Ratchanok Srinok delivered a blistering attack on Bhumjaithai party-list MP Supachai Jaisamut, demanding to know if he felt any shame over attempts to curtail parliamentary committee powers. The confrontation followed House Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha's summoning of 35 committee chairs on October 21 to debate the scope of their authority.
The dispute originated from a letter by Supachai complaining that Law Committee chair Rangsiman Rome, a Prachachat MP, had summoned Bhumjaithai MP Suchada Sangthanyothin to provide information without first securing a committee resolution. Ratchanok argued that calling the chairs together amounted to limiting committee oversight powers, saying she did not know if that was the explicit intent but the agenda clearly showed Supachai's dissatisfaction with parliament exercising oversight over government-aligned MPs.
During the meeting, arguments flared over who controls meeting agendas. Although parliamentary regulations clearly assign that power to the House Speaker, government-aligned members attempted to reinterpret the rules to require a committee vote — where the government holds a majority. Ratchanok warned that if the government can block committee meetings, oversight would become impossible.
"One wonders what word to use — will you swallow everything in this country?" Ratchanok said. "You control the Senate, you have a majority in the House, you hold executive power, and everyone knows you can influence independent bodies. The opposition has only one mechanism left: the committees. Will you take that away too?"
Ratchanok further criticized Supachai's claim that the committee agendas were "hidden," noting they involved government oversight such as budget scrutiny, the TH-AI Passport project, and local exam cheating investigations. She pointed out that Suchada had repeatedly refused to appear when invited. "For me, Khun Supachai, you should have some conscience. All the 'hidden agendas' you mention are entirely about checking the government. If you call government oversight a hidden agenda, or call revealing the truth to the people a hidden agenda, you should seriously ask yourself whether the honor and dignity of your role as an MP still exists — the same honor you asked voters for when you stood for election."
Ratchanok added that the public may not realize the extent of the power grab: the Senate is controlled by the government, the House majority belongs to the government, independent bodies are swayed, and executive power is entirely in their hands. They make the laws, they control the budget.
