The People's Party issued a statement opposing the Election Commission's (EC) prosecution of citizens and media, condemning it as an attempt to silence voices. It affirmed that Parit Vacharasinthu did nothing wrong and announced plans to pursue legal action if the complaint is found to be false.
On 28 February 2026, the People's Party released a statement saying that the general election held on 8 February was fraught with doubts and public criticism regarding efficiency and transparency. Issues included delays in the EC's online election result reporting, discovery of ballot tally sheets (Form S.S. 5/11) in conditions resembling garbage dumps, discrepancies between tally sheets and official count reports (S.S. 5/18) in some units, approval of constituency results before full 100% vote counts or voter turnout disclosures, significant changes after vote recounts in some units, and the ballot design featuring barcodes with card codes allowing traceability of individual votes.
However, over the past one to two weeks, instead of engaging in open, consistent communication with citizens and media to clarify concerns through Q&A, the EC chose one-way communication via statements that failed to resolve many issues. Most recently, on the night of 27 February, the EC issued a statement confirming it had filed a complaint with the Crime Suppression Division to prosecute citizens who scrutinized the EC's handling of ballots, including events on 22 February during a re-election at polling station 9 in Bangkok's constituency 15. The EC's complaint reportedly names academics, civil society members, media personnel, and People's Party spokesperson Parit Vacharasinthu.
Regarding the EC's legal action against citizens and media, the People's Party strongly opposes this decision. If citizens legitimately question and scrutinize government agencies, those agencies should clarify and transparently explain matters to the public and facilitate their oversight.
Instead, the EC chose to prosecute with allegations seemingly disproportionate and contradictory to publicly known facts, which may be seen as a “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation” (SLAPP). Such lawsuits aim not primarily to prove wrongdoing but to burden defendants with time and costs, intimidate, and create a climate of fear, thereby deterring scrutiny.
The freedom of citizens and media to monitor government power is a fundamental democratic right vital to protecting the public interest. This right must be safeguarded, not eroded by state agencies themselves.
Regarding the complaint against People's Party spokesperson Parit Vacharasinthu, he went to the Central Investigation Police Station on 27 February to assert his innocence and demanded the EC clarify the specific allegations and facts behind the complaint. Parit stated he is confident he has done nothing illegal.
Parit explained that he observed the vote counting at the re-election polling station on 22 February. The counting process is public and transparent. He affirmed he did nothing to obstruct the EC's duties.. (Fragment only; no additional text provided) No EC official present at the event warned or suggested that he was acting unlawfully.
The People's Party's legal team confirms that if the EC's complaint is proven to be a false accusation causing harm to citizens, or knowingly filed without legal basis, the party will pursue legal action against the EC.
Amid public doubts and skepticism about the EC's management of the election, the People's Party believes that to restore public trust, the EC should not seek to protect itself by prosecuting citizens and media doing oversight. Instead, it should protect itself by ensuring full transparency, accountability, and resolving all doubts.