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Published on October 26, 2007

Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont has scheduled a meeting with Air Chief Marshal Chalit Phuphasuk to discuss the alleged plan to discredit the People Power Party.

The meeting is expected to take place after Surayud concludes a two-day trip to the Northeast and the North, which began yesterday.

Surayud is likely to ask the junta to review any such plans in order to ensure free and fair campaigning in the lead-up to the December 23 election.

Defence Minister Boon-rawd Somtas said People Power Party leader Samak Sundaravej was being paranoid and interpreting the junta's plan as a malicious ploy to go after his life.

Samak claimed on Monday the junta would go all the way to destroy his party, including the possibility of killing him.

In reaction to Samak's comments, Boonrawd said he saw the documents as part of efforts to restore democratic rule and ensure a successful election. There was no plan to destroy any particular party, he said.

"All top military commanders have pledged to keep soldiers out of politics and will not interfere with the electoral process," he said.

Meanwhile, the defence minister has ordered tightened security on documents and military installations in light of information leaks and bomb attacks, his spokesman Lt General Phitsanu Pujchakan said yesterday.

"Officers need to stay alert at all times in order to avoid compromising security because of negligence and complacency," he quoted Boonrawd as saying.

Boonrawd chaired a Defence Council meeting with top commanders from the three wings of the armed forces.

He urged every commander to ensure subordinates comply with security measures.

He did not single out any specific case as a lesson, but noted news reports about last month's explosion near the Army headquarters and the leak of classified documents relating to the People Power Party.

With regard to the leaks, Phitsanu said authorities had not concluded their probe to determine the authenticity of the alleged "propaganda" plan. Documents detailing the plan, which were brought to light by Samak, may have been doctored or could be genuine. The inquiry would try to find that out, he said.

Samak said yesterday the documents were genuine and he had not paid for them.

He had spoken out about them, he said, not to seek sympathy, but to protect the party.

"It is sad that a man like the prime minister said the

documents existed but that there was nothing serious [in them], just an annual summary. He did not read thoroughly.

The documents were signed on September 14, and would be in effect until the election, mentioning measures to oppose People Power Party.

"And those responsible distorted things by saying they were a [national] security matter," he said.

The Nation