As we recently posted, theres a loosely coordinated effort to destroy the party and its leader. Thanks to some excellent reporting by Thapanee Eadsrichai, it is now pretty clear that one element of that effort was a plot to unseat Pita that involves politicians associated with the electorally defeated regime and other actors associated with that regime and its business allies.

Prachatai reports that: The Move Forward Party (MFP) suggests there has been a coordinated plot to disqualify the MFP leader [Pita Limjaroenrat], by reinstating iTVs status as a media organization, using allegedly fabricated minutes from the annual shareholder meeting of iTV Public Company in [26] April.

Those minutes appear to have been doctored to state that iTV is still operating as a media business. These minutes report that shareholder Panuwat Kwanyuen asked the chair of the meeting, Kim Siritaweechai, whether iTV is still operating in the media sector. The question itself looks like a set up (see below). While the minutes state that iTV is operating in media, thus screwing Pita, the response was recorded and given to Thapanee. In that, rather than saying: Currently, the company is still operating according to the objectives of the company, and financial statements and corporate income tax returns have been submitted as usual, the recording reveals that Kims response was: Currently, the company has no operations.

The Bangkok Post has a slightly different and more emphatic translation:

In the clip, a shareholder asks: Does iTV still operate media businesses?, to which Executive Director Kim Siritaweechai, who chaired the meeting, replies: As of now, the firm doesnt do anything. It has to wait for a legal case to end.

It was the doctored minutes were used by Palang Pracharaths Ruengkrai Leekijwattana as important evidence in his complaint to the Election Commission (EC) regarding Pitas shareholding.

Suspiciously, Thapanee reported that the file of the minutes that Ruangkrai used as evidence had been deleted, but an anonymous source who attended the meeting had backed up the document after sensing something was off. The document and video evidence were then sent to Thapanee.

And it gets more suspicious:

It was with some satisfaction that we read that the complaints table had been turned and that Srisuwan Janya, a man who claims to be an organization, has finally been on the receiving end of complaints.

Srisuwan, who costs the taxpayer millions of baht with his almost daily petitions and complaints, has had his association de-registered and dissolved by the Department of Provincial Administration. The department decided that the association had never  met membership requirements.

The department said:

Clipped from The Nation

the association was registered on May 13, 2009, with three founding members and 11 prospective members. However, the department found that three of those listed as potential members claimed they had never applied for membership in any capacity, while two more of those named admitted they had not attended a 2008 meeting held to acknowledge the formation of the association.

The department ruled that fraudulent statements made by the association read Srisuwan were grounds to dissolve Srisuwans personal vehicle for his complaints.

Well-known lawyer Rachapon Siri...

Following the junta-appointed Election Commissions decision to investigate Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat, the partys spokesperson, Rangsiman Rome said the ECs decision was an effort to destroy Move Forward. It is certainly a part of a loosely coordinated effort to destroy the party and its leader.

Rangsiman made it clear that the EC has seriously damaged Move Forward when he urged the other partners in the eight-party coalition government not to mix this case with their political move[s]. PPT would suggest that the coalition is now hanging by a thread as it is made clear that the powers-that-be will seek to eliminate Move Forward. Of course, should his nomination as prime minister go ahead, the already recalcitrant senators, with virtually every one of them beholden to the former junta, will now use this EC  decision as an excuse to dump Pita.

Hence, it is no surprise that Thailands top Twitter hashtag is Election commissioners must go to jail. Thai Newsroom sa...