Pheu Thai cornered after King refuses to dissolve parliament
Tomorrow, the conservatives of Bhumjaithai will attempt to elect a minority government with the conditional and temporary support of the reformists, who won the 2023 elections but were then excluded from the unprecedented alliance between populists and pro-military forces, which was swept away by the conflict with Cambodia. Even the Shinawatra family, after yet another judicial ouster, are now courting the heirs of Move Forward. The army: ‘We will support any government, but we will guarantee stability.’
Bangkok (AsiaNews) - Thailand is looking to the coming hours for some certainty from its Parliament and, perhaps, greater political and governmental stability after two years lost in personal feuds and political manoeuvring that have succeeded in marginalising the progressive and reformist forces that won the May 2023 elections, while the country faces a severe economic and credibility crisis.
Provisional Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai - representative of the Pheu Thai populist party linked to the Shinawatra family - made a desperate move yesterday when he asked King Rama X to dissolve Parliament. The request was rejected by the Privy Council and may also result in him being charged with lèse-majesté for attempting to involve the king in political matters.
The parliamentary vote to elect a new prime minister will therefore go ahead as planned tomorrow, following the Constitutional Court's ruling on 29 August that removed Paetongtarn Shinawatra from office.
The former rivals of the People's Party (the new name of the reformist Move Forward party, also outlawed by the courts after its success in the 2023 elections) and the conservative Bhumjaitai party (formerly allied with Pheu Thai in the previous majority) have agreed on a common candidate, Bhumjaithai leader Anutin Charnvirakul, to lead a minority government.
However, some points of the programme are still being finalised, including the commitment to hold elections within a few months.
Meanwhile, Pheu Thai - the main party of the former majority, whose representative Paetongtarn Shinawatra was forced by the courts to step down as head of the executive for failing to defend national interests in a June meeting with Cambodia's strongman, Hun Sen at the height of tensions between the two countries - is engaged in a frantic race to complete important economic measures in the coming hours, including pension funding reform.
In search of difficult policy convergences for the near future - and in turn seeking a last-minute alliance with the People's Party, aiming for a quick return to the polls and a revision of the Constitution that would see them in agreement - Pheu Thai has also already chosen its candidate to lead the new government, Chaikasem Nitisiri.
This is no easy task for Pheu Thai, which in the last two decades (albeit under different names) has dominated almost all elections despite its founder, entrepreneur and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, leading it from exile abroad before returning home two years ago.
Even if achieved, however, this goal could be thwarted by a request for the party to be dissolved by the courts as a “tail” to the Paetongtarn affair, for which the party would be held jointly responsible. This is a card that pro-monarchy and military rivals could play if they do not see him defeated in Parliament tomorrow.
It is no coincidence that General Boonsin Padklang, commander of the First Army Corps, which has jurisdiction over the capital region, spoke out to signal the attention of the army leadership, which is no stranger to “decisive interventions” in this type of situation in Thailand. While ruling out any coup ambitions and guaranteeing support for a future government of any political party, he confirmed the armed forces' commitment to “guaranteeing stability”.
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15/05/2023 15:39
12/08/2016 10:27
