By Thai Newsroom Reporters
DE FACTO PHEU THAI PARTY BOSS Thaksin Shinawatra has been unusually reserved and patient over an apparent inter-party conflict between the Move Forward and his own camp.
The deposed prime minister has only tweeted to say “sounds familiar” in response to emotion-filled, belligerent remarks made by one of his supporters during Wednesday’s Caretalk podcast following a verbal exchange between Pheu Thai leader Chonlanan Srikaew and Sita Divari of the Thai Sang Thai during a press conference and an MoU signing among the Move Forward-led coalition partners.
Chonlanan had dared the Move Forward, which has 151 MPs from the May 14 election, thus becoming the largest party and core of eight coalition partners with a combined force of 312 MPs, to choose between the second largest party with 141 MPs, namely the Pheu Thai, and the other one with only six MPs, namely the Thai Sang Thai.
Sita insisted that Chonlanan agree to sign what was called an Advance MoU to assure both the Move Forward and Pheu Thai will stay together on the same side of the parliament chamber’s aisle, no matter if that means either in government or opposition.
His challenge was apparently made amidst hearsay that the Pheu Thai would very likely manage to set up a coalition government of their own without the Move Forward as coalition partner only if the latter’s leader Pita Limjaroenrat finally failed to secure enough yea votes to become prime minister.
Thaksin who has been apparently reserved and patient over the verbal tussles between the Move Forward and Pheu Thai has sent his youngest daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra running as one of a trio of Pheu Thai partisan contestants for prime minister.
The Pheu Thai, which was licking their wounds inflicted by a crushing debacle over an unmet landslide victory in the nationwide election, originally, repeatedly heralded by the de facto party boss, is more or less speculated to bring the Palang Pracharath headed by Prawit Wongsuwan and Bhumjaithai under de facto party boss Newin Chidchob into the planned Pheu Thai-led coalition which would certainly do without the Move Forward.
The Pheu Thai-led coalition partners would otherwise have a combined force of about 280 MPs at their command, including 141 Pheu Thai MPs, 71 Bhumjaithai MPs and 40 Palang Pracharath MPs, among others, plus an overwhelming support from the senators, all of whom had been handpicked by Prawit and coup leader-turned-prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha following the 2014 coup, partisan sources said.
The Pheu Thai rank and file would undoubtedly persist that they have been supportive of the Move Forward leader but finally could not help land him the elected premiership due to a possible lack of adequate support from among legislators in a joint House/Senate session, they said.
A partisan candidate for prime minister is constitutionally obliged to get yea votes from more than half the combined total of 500 MPs and 250 senators or at least 376 votes.
CAPTIONS:
Top: Former prime minister and Pheu Thai de facto boss Thaksin Shinawatra and his sister also a former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra met his daughter and a Pheu Thai candidate for prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and her husband Pitaka Suksawat in Singapore today (May 25). Photo: Thai Rath
Front Page: Merged images of Thaksin Shinawatra tasting a mint chocolate in Singapore taken by his daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra. Photo: Matichon
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