Ex-Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat Surprises with Senate Candidacy

[snoop1130]

 

The former Prime Minister of Thailand, Somchai Wongsawat, unexpectedly showed up at the Chiang Mai district office at 9 in the morning to mark the beginning of the senatorial candidate registrations. Somchai served briefly as prime minister from September 18, 2008, until December 2, 2008, and did not address the media during his visit.

 

His time as prime minister was filled with challenges due to Thailand's unsettled political situation and the worldwide financial crisis. His tenure ended abruptly when the Constitutional Court disbanded his People's Power Party (PPP) over allegations of fraud, leading to a political prohibition for him and other party leaders. It is interesting to note that Somchai is connected to former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra through marriage, as he is married to Thaksin's sister.

 

Noppadol Suya, the Election Commission Director in Chiang Mai, shared that they expect around 1,500 candidates from the province to run for a Senate seat. The significant number of registrations on the first day implies a highly contested race. He also reminded all candidates to follow all the rules closely, especially the rule against promoting themselves in the media.

 

The constitution states that the selection process involves several rounds of voting at the district, provincial, and national levels. Candidates need to get through six voting rounds to secure one of the ten Senate seats allotted to each of the 20 qualifying professional groups, and there is a backup list of five candidates per group.

 

The first round at the district level is scheduled for June 9, with provincial voting following on June 16, and the final round at the national level on June 26, as per The Nation. While the journey to the Senate will be a challenging one, the sudden participation of Somchai has undoubtedly raised the stakes.

 

File photo for reference only. Courtesy of Google

 

-- 2024-05-21

 

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[mfd101]

The voting system has 2 cultural aspects that Thais love: complexity beyond imagining and endless possibilities for intrigue and disputation.

 

Fun for all the family.

[Srikcir]

14 hours ago, mfd101 said:

The voting system has 2 cultural aspects that Thais love: complexity beyond imagining and endless possibilities for intrigue and disputation.

 

Fun for all the family.

And a voting system that doesn't recognize the sovereignty of the Thai People. None of the Senators will be selected nor elected by the Thai electorate.  

[hotchilli]

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

His time as prime minister was filled with challenges due to Thailand's unsettled political situation and the worldwide financial crisis

Nothing seems to have changed during those 16 tears... 

[hotchilli]

8 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

And a voting system that doesn't recognize the sovereignty of the Thai People. None of the Senators will be selected nor elected by the Thai electorate.  

But they will be selected by the elites behind closed doors.

[scorecard]

But step by step the whole shin clan reappearing -  there's a master plan without doubt.

 

But what's the real objective?

 

Suspect it's power and access to big business and money. 

 

Is he still the lapog for thaksins loud big sister?