"Nattapong" Slams Government for Ignoring Parliamentary Mechanisms, Points Out "PM" Visited House Only to Greet MPs Instead of Answering Questions, Urges Accountability to Legislative Branch

Today (2 Nov 2026) at 10:00 AM at Parliament, Mr. Nattapong Ruengpanyawut, Leader of the Opposition, addressed the potential filing of a non-binding general debate under Section 152, highlighting it as another parliamentary mechanism the opposition can use to scrutinize the government. However, he emphasized that the key issue at present is that the government must respect and prioritize parliamentary mechanisms far more than it currently does—whether through debates under Section 151 and Section 152, committee questioning, or answering interpellation questions. He noted that past behavior from the cabinet and the Prime Minister reflects very little regard for the parliamentary stage, particularly instances where the Prime Minister entered Parliament only to walk around greeting MPs rather than performing duties at the dais to answer questions, illustrating a lack of proper accountability from the executive branch to the legislature. Therefore, regardless of whether a Section 152 debate is submitted, it remains just one of several tools available to monitor the government.

Regarding the Democrat Party focusing more on a Section 151 debate, Mr. Nattapong viewed that the People's Party values every channel, and while the Democrat Party is free to express its opinions, the final decision on whether to submit any motion must be based on the prevailing political context and situation, reaffirming that a Section 152 debate remains a valid platform for oversight.

As for who will make the final call on submitting a Section 152 motion, Mr. Nattapong stated that it involves political strategy, which might not be something that can be explicitly detailed in a public forum regarding the exact criteria used for the decision.

Furthermore, responding to the Prime Minister's remark that no one asks questions when he shows up to Parliament but asks when he is absent, Mr. Nattapong clarified that the opposition has utilized multiple opportunities to invite the Prime Minister and cabinet members—both publicly through the media and via internal coordination. Instead of the executive branch locking in their schedules to answer questions in Parliament every Thursday as required, the opposition has had to ask when ministers are available and schedule interpellations accordingly, which he described as working backwards. He added that even though the opposition has been flexible enough to let the Prime Minister or ministers respond whenever they are ready, there is still no demonstration of adequate accountability toward Parliament.

Photo : Weeraphat Ratsameerueangrong