Thailand ends 2023 with an unpopular government that faces many challenges. It is the fallout from a backroom deal in the summer. In the meantime, the Move Forward Party gains popularity but faces dangerous Constitutional Court hurdles. The latest NIDA Poll shows strong support for Pita Limjaroenrat. However, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has also grown in popularity. This is despite a poor economy and the unpopular political deal now in power.

As Thailand ends its year with Christmas and New Year’s celebrations it does so with an unpopular government led by a popular Prime Minister. It is the result of a backroom deal which allowed former parties of the previous government back into power.

 

This came as events unfolded after the May 14th General Election. A NIDA poll on Christmas Eve, December 24th, showed clearly that the Thai public has not forgotten. Support for the Move Forward Party and the blocked candidate for Prime Minister, Pita Limjaroenrat, is stronger than ever.

 

After a few days’ holiday, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin appeared on Christmas Eve on the Nation TV channel to discuss politics. It comes as the country goes into 2024 after a tumultuous political year in 2023.

 

After a historic General Election on May 14th, the winning Move Forward Party was subsequently denied power. Then leader and Prime Ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat was blocked by the country’s upper house or the Senate.

 

by Joseph O' Connor

 

Full story: Thai Examiner.com 2023-12-26

 

- 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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Been here about 30 years. And 'This is Thailand' remains a constant.

It is not about what 'the people' want. Was forever thus.

Edited December 25, 20232 yr by JRG23

2 hours ago, webfact said:

As Thailand ends its year with Christmas and New Year’s celebrations it does so with an unpopular government led by a popular Prime Minister. It is the result of a backroom deal which allowed former parties of the previous government back into power.

The election was never going to abide by the result if the people wanted Pita the MFP and a change at the top.

The fix was in before the voting started.

I sincerely hope that all involved in the corrupt shenanigans that denied the result the people voted for, die of cancer in 2024.

The MFP and progressive movement here in Thailand is like a tree with many branches.

 

Chop the branches you may but they will grow again even stronger than the last.

 

You can't run away from the truth forever. The truth is that most people love pitha and MFP and one day they will get what is rightfully theirs.

 

What they have now is a frankenstein, ramshackle government that nobody voted for, only those at the very top wanted it this way.

 

They are on borrowed time.

This is a good thing. That betrayal should never be forgotten. 

 

The senate and army leadership is made up of weak, pathetic, cowardly, self entitled hooligans, who are accustomed to a perch atop the ivory tower, scared to death of being taken down a notch, and being asked to be accountable for their heinous and unforgivable actions. Of course they will resort to whatever dirty tactics they can. That is who and what they are. Filth. They are the deplorables.

 

These lowlifes have been bullying the Thai people for decades now. Guess they never expected the favor to be returned. They all assume they are "above it all". Mightier than the masses. Too rich to touch. Well, perhaps things are about to change. Perhaps your lives are about to take a turn for the worse, and you and your families are going to be subject to intense harassment for the cowardly and highly dishonorable positions you accepted. After all, the fortune comes at some cost, right? Harass the army leaders and the senators, and their families. 

 

The kids benefit from the fortunes their parents make off their illicit jobs. They are treated special due to their parents positions. They need to know that their parents are monsters. We must stop coddling the kids. Life can and should be ugly for those gangster families. 

 

The people know the disqualification was a sham, an act of desperation, a power grab, an act of spectacularly, morally bankrupt power mongering men, and a total travesty.

 

The army is far too powerful here, he knows that, and reform is needed. The sooner the better.

 

Thailand really needs a political " reboot " .

Let's hope that this will come after the next elections ...

Hope is the last thing to die ...

Results like these almost ensure that the Charter Court will dissolve MFP, and recommend prosecution (Lese Majeste/112), when they issue their verdict on 31 January 2024.

 

Better for Pita if everyone pretended they liked the Buffoon or the daughter.

 

 

 

 

Yet the public do absolutely nothing.

It's an army dictatorship hiding behind a gerrymandered fake democracy that would inflict a huge cost in blood if their power and wealth were ever seriously threatened even going Burma lite if that was needed. The best way out for Thais who want progressive politics and change is to leave the country.

It was Thaksin's intention to install light weight Srettha to prepare the way for Ung Ing. He didn't even allow Srettha to be an MP for chrissakes and he has no faction of his own in the party. It is working out fine. Srettha is just a clown who does as he is told and racks up airmiles set up to sell land bridges that are known to be unviable but generate consulting fees for cronies.  When Srettha's credibility is at a low enough ebb, Thaksin will push him aside, blame him for all that has gone wrong and usher in the airhead Ung Ing as PM while he controls everything from behind her.

12 minutes ago, Dogmatix said:

It was Thaksin's intention to install light weight Srettha to prepare the way for Ung Ing. He didn't even allow Srettha to be an MP for chrissakes and he has no faction of his own in the party. It is working out fine. Srettha is just a clown who does as he is told and racks up airmiles set up to sell land bridges that are known to be unviable but generate consulting fees for cronies.  When Srettha's credibility is at a low enough ebb, Thaksin will push him aside, blame him for all that has gone wrong and usher in the airhead Ung Ing as PM while he controls everything from behind her.

But coloured socks don't forget the coloured socks....

2 hours ago, bob smith said:

The MFP and progressive movement here in Thailand is like a tree with many branches.

 

Chop the branches you may but they will grow again even stronger than the last.

 

You can't run away from the truth forever. The truth is that most people love pitha and MFP and one day they will get what is rightfully theirs.

 

What they have now is a frankenstein, ramshackle government that nobody voted for, only those at the very top wanted it this way.

 

They are on borrowed time.

Think you are wrong. Thai government will remain as it is. It is supported by the elite. 

10 minutes ago, thesetat said:

Think you are wrong. Thai government will remain as it is. It is supported by the elite. 

Agreed, follow the guns and the money and anybody in the elite such as Thannkorn gets the 'you wouldn't want to lose your families fortune' pressure and the threat of Thaksinisation to shut up and stand down. He famously said he would die for freedom before getting the message to back down. People forget how bloody things have been and could become. But of course, they don't want to do that unless they really really had to.   

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6_October_1976_massacre

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Drum_killings

Edited December 26, 20232 yr by beautifulthailand99

2 hours ago, koolkarl said:

Yet the public do absolutely nothing.

 

starting to look more and more like the west. except for france and muslim countries (who protest mostly against the usa) there are fewer and fewer people willing to protest. this might have something to do with the aging of the population. many years ago i asked my mother why she wasnt willing to protest. her answer was that she was too old and she didnt see a reason for it. sad...

4 hours ago, bob smith said:

They are on borrowed time.

History illustrates it's a long term loan at low interest rates 😔

1 hour ago, Pouatchee said:

her answer was that she was too old

Very true, protesting is a young man's game.

3 hours ago, koolkarl said:

Yet the public do absolutely nothing.

Because they are kept out of real hardship to maintain the apathy so despite the country falling well short of its potential and the real crime, poorly educated and informed it's not sufficient motivation to run the risks of severely discomforting themselves to make the changes needed. The current global tensions and wars further discourage displacing the status quo. It would take a large drop in the electorate's living standards to enable that. Not going to happen.

As I understand it Pita represents the urban elite and Thaksin the rural poor. Both leaders seem to want a more western oriented policy, something that is resisted by the powers that be.

6 hours ago, nausea said:

Very true, protesting is a young man's game.

Except for a handful of aging members on this forum,

              I didn't care about the politics here when I first arrived in the early 90's  I don't care about them now either.  I very much doubt any of the political factions have any intention of making things better for me personally, and even if they did the matter is totally out of my hands, so l continue to remain ambivalent about it all.

             The rest of you should be careful what you wish for, things could be a lot worse  for the likes of us

Edited December 26, 20232 yr by Bday Prang

On 12/26/2023 at 6:22 AM, Suua said:

I sincerely hope that all involved in the corrupt shenanigans that denied the result the people voted for, die of cancer in 2024.

Ouch

On 12/26/2023 at 6:22 AM, Suua said:

I sincerely hope that all involved in the corrupt shenanigans that denied the result the people voted for, die of cancer in 2024.

I sincerely hope you are a Thai national  directly related to Pita,  otherwise your comment is just plain weird and more than a little disturbing