Labour Minister Julapun Amornvivat has insisted that the election for the Social Security Office (SSO) board has not been postponed, but only temporarily halted after the Supreme Administrative Court issued an injunction, which the SSO plans to appeal.

Mr Julapun said on Tuesday that the SSO was legally required to comply with the court’s order. The SSO election committee resolved on Monday to suspend preparations until there is clarity from the court, rather than formally postponing the poll.

“If the court’s ruling is favourable, we are ready to proceed with the election according to the original schedule,” he said, referring to the planned vote on Sept 27.

Mr Julapun said the issue stemmed from regulations introduced in 2021-22, before he took office. Upon becoming labour minister this year, he received repeated calls from civil society groups and other stakeholders to expedite the long-awaited election for a new SSO board.

He said the ministry had decided to use the same regulations applied in the previous board election in 2023 — the first of its kind — and issued a corresponding announcement. However, after a petitioner challenged the process, the court granted an injunction, which authorities were obliged to respect.

Voter registration opened on June 1 and closed on July 15, while the election is scheduled for Sept 27.

The SSO will appeal the court injunction in the hope of allowing the election to proceed under the existing timetable, said Mr Julapun.

Rejecting suggestions that political considerations were behind the suspension or that the government was attempting to avoid holding the vote, he said he did not know the petitioner, who he understood to be a lawyer.

“I have never met the petitioner and have no connection with him. He has the legal right to file the case, and we must follow the judicial process,” he said.

New board urgently needed

Mr Julapun said he hoped the election could go ahead as planned, stressing the urgency of establishing a fully empowered new SSO board to oversee the agency’s operations.

“We need to move forward with the election as quickly as possible. What may happen in the future will depend on the court’s ruling,” he said.

He dismissed the opposition’s claims that the government lacked sincerity in organising the election. The SSO itself was also criticised for not launching a serious voter registration campaign until seven days before the deadline.

Mr Julapun said he had held discussions with opposition politicians as well as groups representing insured workers, including the Progressive Social Security group, which is aligned with the People’s Party and won most of the seats in the 2023 poll.

The minister said he explained to them how his focus on following all the required procedures for the vote was proof of the government’s commitment.

The People’s Party has long campaigned for improvements to the Social Security system, and its MPs have been outspoken critics of what they say is financial mismanagement by the SSO.

Encouraging people to take part in SSO board elections and seek board seats is a key part of the party’s grassroots political organising strategy.

Mr Julapun also sought to reassure employers and insured workers who had already registered to vote that the election would go ahead.

He said the government’s preferred outcome was to hold the poll as scheduled on Sept 27. However, if the court ultimately rules that changes to the regulations are necessary, the election process could be delayed while the rules are amended.

He pledged to press ahead until the election is successfully held and urged registered employers and insured workers to follow official updates as the government continued to provide information on the case.