Ex-premier Chuan said powerful politicians regularly interfered with the work of prosecutors and judges. In one case, he said, members of a big party wanted a certain politician from another party to defect and join the larger party. The politician in question was being prosecuted on illegal gambling charges, but the bigger party claimed it could clear the case because the prime minister's brother-in-law is the Justice Ministry's permanent secretary. They also offered the politician Bt32 million to defect, but he rejected the offer, Chuan alleged.

Chuan also said that Wichian Wiriyaprasit, former attorney-general, told him that the suspended jail terms handed down to nine former members of the National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) for awarding themselves a large pay rise could not have come at a better time.

"He [Wichian] said had the NCCC commissioners been allowed to continue in their posts, the NCCC would have been rotten to its core, because six out of the nine belonged to a bloc [of politicians in power] and the three others were meaningless,'' Chuan said.

Wichian himself was one of the nine NCCC commissioners given a suspended jail term over the pay-rise scandal.

Chuan said that a politician in power also interfered in the selection of the NCCC candidates, whose nomination for Royal endorsement was eventually rejected by His Majesty's principal private secretary.

"During the meeting to select the NCCC chairman, the candidates were told not to select a police or military person as chairman, but only the person specified, otherwise they would be regarded as traitors and ungrateful. This [the rejection] shows that heaven has eyes, and finally the NCCC candidates were removed,'' he said.

Chuan was addressing barristers undergoing ethics training at the Bar Association.

Chuan, a former prime minister and Democrat Party leader, said the current political crisis has been brought about through abuse of the law - especially by the government and the House of Representatives.

"The consequence of the ill-use of the law is that independent agencies, which are the pillar supporting democracy, are rotten - such as the Election Commission and the National Counter Corruption Commission,'' he said.

Chuan said the country was in crises because bad lawyers advised the government to violate law and order.

"There is a tendency for people not to follow His Majesty the King's judgement. If any of you ever have the chance to advise politicians, advise them to respect legal principles and the balance of power,'' Chuan told the barristers.

The former Democrat Party leader said the two agencies were good institutions, but the problems were the individual commissioners, the selection process and the nomination by the Senate, which voted for the commissioners on the orders of politicians.

Privy Councillor Tanin Kraivixien also spoke at the Bar Association. He said that when he was a Constitution drafter he had written nine provisions in the belief that the number was auspicious and would prevent the Constitution from being rejected by the House. But the provisions he wrote were later amended.

He said he was no longer superstitious: "This showed that auspicious numbers are superficial and cannot help maintain the longevity of the constitution,'' he said.