Thailand just chose a prime minister. He’s not the one people voted for

[koolkarl]

And what do the Thai people do?  Complain on social media. Big deal. 

[dinsdale]

16 minutes ago, mfd101 said:

Will be interesting to see how the Constitutional Court & the Electoral Commission behave - over time - under (so to speak) new management ... I wonder how many opportunities are coming along over, say, the next 2 years for new appointments to either.

Move to dissole MFP.

[geoffrobbo]

"On Monday, he told reporters it was “necessary," given the country’s protracted political deadlock, for people to move past the party’s earlier promises not to cooperate with military leaders."

 

I wonder what other promises are going to be ditched to stay  in power?

[zzaa09]

 

[PingRoundTheWorld]

Blah blah blah. Who cares if it's "right" or not - the incoming government will be able to function, as opposed to the outgoing military government or a MFP-led government. It's not like PTP are a minority party - they literally only won a few less seats than MFP - totally legitimate for them to form a government if that government will be broader and more stable than what MFP could come up with.

MFP's mistake was reaching for the stars while ignoring the moon and everything in between - they've taken the position of a spoiled child that insists on either winning or not playing at all. If they compromised on some of their more controversial policies like NOT pushing for lese majeste law reform (save that for later) they could've formed a government, but showing their political inexperience they were left out of the game completely - a matter of their own doing.

Some might blame PTP for doing a U-turn and forming a coalition with the military, but realistically that's the only way they could've formed a government, and now they have plenty of leeway to execute policies - the military cannot block good policies because MFP would vote for them too if they align with their beliefs, and some policies MFP won't agree with will be supported by the military parties. Have their cake and eat it too. ????

Anyway, I'm excited to see Thailand get back on the path of a non-military government that actually executes for the people and not just the elite. We'll see.

[DLock]

The party that won...is now the opposition to the party that was "elected".

 

Regardless of who is pulling the strings, their strategic brilliance cannot be denied.

 

Masterful.

[billd766]

57 minutes ago, webfact said:

Pheu Thai's prime ministerial candidate, Srettha Thavisin, greets party members during a meeting at its headquarters in Bangkok on Monday, ahead of his nomination as premier in a parliamentary vote on Tuesday. (Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

BANGKOK — Thailand has selected a new prime minister. He’s not from the party people voted for in May.

 

Led by an 11-party coalition, lawmakers agreed Tuesday afternoon to appoint Srettha Thavisin of the Pheu Thai party as Thailand’s next prime minister, ending months of turbulent negotiations that have alienated the reformist, youth-oriented party, Move Forward, which was blocked from forming a government despite clinching a stunning victory at the polls.

 

Srettha, 60, a real estate tycoon turned political newcomer, received the support of more than 400 legislators, and has said he will focus on stimulating Thailand’s lagging economy. On Monday, he told reporters it was “necessary," given the country’s protracted political deadlock, for people to move past the party’s earlier promises not to cooperate with military leaders.

While the election was widely regarded as a rebuke of the conservative military establishment that has governed Southeast Asia’s second largest economy for the past decade, the new ruling coalition includes pro-military leaders, including generals from the outgoing government who have violently quashed criticism in the name of maintaining stability.

 

Thai voters could oust military from power — barring election fraud

 

The vote formalized a remarkable about-face for Pheu Thai, which vowed — until recently — not to share power with members of the conservative elite who have repeatedly ousted it from government through judicial or military coups.

 

Hours before the vote, Thailand’s former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra returned to the country after 17 years in self-exile, a decision that analysts say was probably made in anticipation of Pheu Thai’s shaky ascent back into power. Thaksin, 74, helped establish an earlier incarnation of Pheu Thai and his daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, was earlier put forward as one of the party’s presidential candidates.

A billionaire who built his wealth running a telecommunications conglomerate, Thaksin led Thailand from 2001 to 2006, when he was overthrown by the military. Faced with a raft of corruption charges, he has avoided returning to his home country with the exception of a brief visit in 2008, even as the populist movement he founded continued to play a major role in Thai politics.

 

But on Tuesday morning, hours before Pheu Thai’s Srettha garnered enough votes to assume the top role, Thaksin disembarked from a private jet at Don Mueang International Airport. After meeting briefly with family, he was escorted to the Supreme Court and then to the Bangkok Remand Prison, where authorities said he is being held in isolation.

It is not immediately clear whether Thaksin will serve his full sentence of eight years in prison under the new government led by Srettha, a close ally of the Shinawatra family. Many expect Thaksin to try to seek a royal pardon or parole based on medical reasons.

“We’ve missed him,” said Boom Faidang, 66, one of thousands of Thaksin supporters in red shirts who gathered at the airport to welcome home the renowned fugitive. “He has done so many good things for Thai people and for the country.”

Deposed by the military in 2014, Pheu Thai earned fewer votes than expected at the election this May, losing ground to Move Forward, a youth-oriented party that has sought — more explicitly and consistently than Pheu Thai — to curb the sweeping powers of the Thai monarchy and military.

 

Pheu Thai initially allied itself with Move Forward against the military parties. But after the country’s military-appointed, 250-member Senate voted twice to reject the prime ministerial bid of Move Forward’s candidate Pita Limjaroenrat, Pheu Thai abandoned that coalition and reneged on campaign promises not to ally with its former political foes, including the parties of outgoing Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha and Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan.

Move Forward, which voted against the ruling coalition on Tuesday, will again serve in the opposition. “I didn’t fail” to become prime minister, Pita, a lawmaker from Bangkok with degrees from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has emphasized to reporters in recent months, “I was blocked.”

 

Move Forward supporters as well as a segment of Pheu Thai adherents say the new coalition ignores what people demanded at the polls, which is an end to military rule. In a news conference Monday, Pheu Thai said it had promised cabinet positions to pro-military parties Palang Pracharath and Ruam Thai Sang Chart, which have governed with rising authoritarianism over the past decade, arresting hundreds of young people at student-led protests in 2020 and changing the constitution to preserve their power.

 

Nattawut Saikua, a prominent leader of Thaksin’s red shirt movement, announced this week that he would leave Pheu Thai because of its decision to share power with the military. “I can’t go along with it,” said Nattawut.

While the new government is not “fully democratic,” it is expected to be more effective than the outgoing junta in addressing the challenges plaguing Thailand, from increasing household debt and a rapidly aging population to rising crime and insecurity along the Thai-Myanmar border, said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

 

Srettha, a Bangkok native, holds a master’s of business administration from Claremont University in the United States, and is known to be popular among business leaders. “Thailand is in desperate need of a better performing government, a more competent government,” Thitinan said.

 

Pheu Thai’s compromise may have also paved the way for Thaksin’s return, though in the long term it could cause lasting damage to the party’s reputation as well as to Thaksin’s political legacy. This is “a short term, shortsighted investment,” said Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a professor of Thai politics at Kyoto University, and a critic of the Thai monarchy. “It is not for the benefit of the voters or supporters of the party,” Pavin said, “but for Thaksin’s own interest.”

Pheu Thai’s dealmaking, analysts say, could end up driving support for Move Forward, which has called for Thailand to amend its controversial lèse-majesté law that mandates severe punishments for anyone who criticizes the royal family.

In 2020, when Thailand’s Constitutional Court disbanded an earlier version of the party, called Future Forward, thousands of young people took to the streets of Bangkok, braving the military’s water cannons and tear gas. At the recent election, it nearly doubled its number of seats in the House of Representatives, showing that it can capture a broad base of support, said Aaron Connelly, a senior fellow for Southeast Asian Politics at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Singapore.

 

Conservatives may have stopped Move Forward from assuming power now, Connelly said, but “they can’t keep doing this without forcing a reckoning.”

 

By Wilawan Watcharasakwej and Rebecca Tan

The Washington Post
 

Tan reported from Singapore. Regine Cabato in Manila contributed to this report.

 

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/08/21/thailand-thaksin-pheu-thai-election-srettha/#

 

-- The Washington Post 2023-08-22

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

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Actually he IS from a party that the Thai people voted for, just not from the one that came first.

 

It has to be an improvement on the last election when Prayuth was foisted on the Thai people.

 

Prayuth did NOT stand for election and was not a member of any political party until recently.

 

Just how Srettha Thavisin of the Pheu Thai party and the PTP will get on in the future remains to be seen.

 

I will try not to be too judgemental for perhaps 3 months of so, and see if he can control Prawit and Anutin.

 

Both of their plans seen to be scuttled at the moment.

[MrMojoRisin]

26 minutes ago, NemoH said:

Strange to find so many comments from people who lack understanding of parliament system.. the heading is misleading too.

I am neutral on who becomes PM. 

MF party only won 30% of the vote so how is it that the remaining 70% cannot choose their candidate for PM? So how is their choice not something the Thai people had voted for ?

Because, in every other country with a functioning parliamentary system there is not 250 unelected members of a different chamber with what is effectively veto power over the PM selection.

 

Do you believe 250 unelected Senators should have the power to overrule the wishes of the Thai voters or do you lack understanding?

[Tropposurfer]

A monumental farce. 

[MrMojoRisin]

5 minutes ago, PingRoundTheWorld said:

MFP's mistake was reaching for the stars while ignoring the moon and everything in between - they've taken the position of a spoiled child that insists on either winning or not playing at all. If they compromised.. 

Integrity is not a character flaw.

[retarius]

I'm glad it's over, but I do wish it had been Thaksin's daughter. With the exposure of the PM in Thailand, on the TV every night, you want someone easy on the eye. Not some ugly wretch like this, with dirt and corruption oozing from every pore. 

[bob smith]

STILL better than the absolute shower we have had since 2014.

 

no more attitude adjustment, self censorship, banning books etc.

 

Thailand has taken a very small but significant step toward democracy.

Only time well tell how long it lasts.....

[retarius]

12 minutes ago, MrMojoRisin said:

Because, in every other country with a functioning parliamentary system there is not 250 unelected members of a different chamber with what is effectively veto power over the PM selection.

 

Do you believe 250 unelected Senators should have the power to overrule the wishes of the Thai voters or do you lack understanding?

This is a problem with the Thai constitution which was supposed to keep the military in power for ever. It's not unprecedented, the Brits have the appointed and anachronistic House of Lords, which in my opinion should be abolished and replaced with a second parliament voted for by proportional representation But Thais don't vote for PM anyway and they Pita's party got only 30% of the vote. The parties in the coalition captured 70% of the vote so naturally the leader of the coalition should be PM. A new constitution is desperately needed imho.

[GypsyT]

I'm waiting what job Joe gets. Maybe "Transportation" or "Justice".

He has deep first hand experience of both.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-61728101

 

[retarius]

3 minutes ago, bob smith said:

STILL better than the absolute shower we have had since 2014.

 

no more attitude adjustment, self censorship, banning books etc.

 

Thailand has taken a very small but significant step toward democracy.

Only time well tell how long it lasts.....

A man with some sense.....plain Bob Smith, looks like Steptoe but has a brain on him. 

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, findlay13 said:

Democracy in Action????

Probably not worth to remember that guy's name...

[dinsdale]

1 minute ago, bob smith said:

STILL better than the absolute shower we have had since 2014.

 

no more attitude adjustment, self censorship, banning books etc.

 

Thailand has taken a very small but significant step toward democracy.

Only time well tell how long it lasts.....

I'm astounded anyone can use the word democracy in this utter farce. Maybe you can explain the democracy behind 250 senators overruling the large majority vote of the people who elected Pita and MFP with 151 seats and 38% of the votes. There is no democracy in Thailand and PT have joined with the elite/junta who have absolutely no interest in democracy only maintaing power. This has happened. The people were denied a democratically elected government. 

[bob smith]

15 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

This has happened. The people were denied a democratically elected government. 

I agree with you.

 

But it's still better than the military junta.

 

Even if it's only by a fraction.

 

With MFP in the opposition they can go hammer and tongs at the 11 party coalition and start to dismantle it in full public view.

[Srikcir]

33 minutes ago, kingstonkid said:

An American example is Hillary got more votes than Donald but Donald won more states. 

Really not useful in this discussion.

Thailand has nothing like an electoral college voting system. It's more akin to a "mixed member apportion-ment" system like Germany but with its own "nuances" aka "thainess" of rules that can benefit one political faction over others.

In Thailand's election system, a very minority party can become part of a majority coalition government.

Some US states pro rata their electoral college votes directly based on the popular vote. Other states use "winner (simple majority) takes all." In the latter landslide votes for a candidate have no electoral value.

[MrMojoRisin]

22 minutes ago, retarius said:

This is a problem with the Thai constitution which was supposed to keep the military in power for ever. It's not unprecedented, the Brits have the appointed and anachronistic House of Lords, which in my opinion should be abolished and replaced with a second parliament voted for by proportional representation But Thais don't vote for PM anyway and they Pita's party got only 30% of the vote. The parties in the coalition captured 70% of the vote so naturally the leader of the coalition should be PM. A new constitution is desperately needed imho.

In the UK, the Lords are essentially a powerless house of review - so no comparison there.

 

The parties in the MF led coalition captured around 70% of the vote, so naturally the leader of the coalition should… 

[Hall]

What a waste go vote in thailand... meaning absolutely nothing.  Just a waste of money and time.. 

[dinsdale]

16 minutes ago, retarius said:

This is a problem with the Thai constitution which was supposed to keep the military in power for ever. It's not unprecedented, the Brits have the appointed and anachronistic House of Lords, which in my opinion should be abolished and replaced with a second parliament voted for by proportional representation But Thais don't vote for PM anyway and they Pita's party got only 30% of the vote. The parties in the coalition captured 70% of the vote so naturally the leader of the coalition should be PM. A new constitution is desperately needed imho.

You seem to have a short term memory. MFP coalition had almost 67% just between MFP and PT so not inluding the other smaller parties.  MFP won the popular vote. 38.01% which is NOT 30%. MFP has the most seats (151) of any single party so with your logic Pita should be PM. I agree. As for the current coalition are you saying they got 70% of the election votes? PT got 28.86%, MFP as I say 38.01% so I'm having a bit of trouble with where you get current coalition having 70% of the vote.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Thai_general_election

[crazykopite]

In my humble opinion I will be amazed if the coalition lasts longer than a year once these unelected senators are given the big heave ho in May it will be a free for all unless this new government can show huge changes in the next 9 months they will be shown the door and new elections will be held and those who lied and cheated by giving there voters broken promises will be non existent. 

[Brickleberry]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

said Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a professor of Thai politics at Kyoto University, and a critic of the Thai monarchy. “It is not for the benefit of the voters or supporters of the party,” Pavin said, “but for Thaksin’s own interest.”

That's the Thaksin playbook... he looks after himself and his family.

[TBWG]

1 hour ago, Yorkshire Tea said:

11 party coalition!  When's the next election ????

 

What could possibly go wrong!

[herfiehandbag]

1 hour ago, Callmeishmael said:

Does this mean that the 'caretaker' cabinet will finally stop making sweeping changes?

It probably means that the most sweeping change is that they will stop being called "caretakers". 

 

There will, no doubt, be some familiar paws on the levers o FF power.

[Karma80]

The sun will rise tomorrow, and Thailand will still be the land of corruption and under the boot of conservative military influence. Same, same but different PM. One who already broke his word to ascend to the role. Did we ever expect anything less, really?

[steven100]

33 minutes ago, dinsdale said:

I'm astounded anyone can use the word democracy in this utter farce. Maybe you can explain the democracy behind 250 senators overruling the large majority vote of the people who elected Pita and MFP with 151 seats and 38% of the votes. There is no democracy in Thailand and PT have joined with the elite/junta who have absolutely no interest in democracy only maintaing power. This has happened. The people were denied a democratically elected government. 

Thank you for a common sense post.  Of coarse there's no democracy here,  there hasn't been for 50 yrs or more ....   and not likely to start now.   This is a circus ...   the PM gets the job through deals done and promises and cash etc .....   It's an absolute joke ......

[Schnicnac]

1 hour ago, dinsdale said:

People voted for reform and ousting the military elites. The military elites are still there. By the way MFP won 38.01% of the votes and PT 28.86%. That's 66.87% combined (a huge majority in anyones language) for the ousting of the military elite. As I say the military elites are still there and the people's voice has been usurped.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Thai_general_election

It seems it's you who has the lack of understanding.

 

So obviously then there is a significant part of the populace that does not want to "move forward" and the party of the people - the kingmaker here - now chose to work with that other significant part.

 

Doesn't sound so unfamiliar when looking at the parliamentary systems in the west ????

 

[dinsdale]

3 minutes ago, Schnicnac said:

 

So obviously then there is a significant part of the populace that does not want to "move forward" and the party of the people - the kingmaker here - now chose to work with that other significant part.

 

Doesn't sound so unfamiliar when looking at the parliamentary systems in the west ????

 

No it was a minority that voted against change hence the election result. The majority voted for change and won. It was a very, very, very, very miniscule minority (250 senators) that stopped what the people voted for. No system in the west has unelected senators that can do what was done here.