BKK governor Sukhumbhand to run for second gubernatorial term

WASHINGTON DC, May 19 - Incumbent Bangkok governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra on Saturday announced that he will run for a second gubernatorial term under the Democrat Party.

The governor announced his stance as his term expires within the next eight months as reports of possible candidates, both under political parties and independent, sporadically appeared in the media.

Mr Sukhumbhand, now on a visit to Washington DC to endorse the sister cities status of the Thai and US capital cities, said he wanted to continue his work, especially the development of a new monorail rapid transit system.

He said the project is ready to launch without needing to use the budget of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA).

The governor, however, noted that the project has not yet been approved by the cabinet of two governments.

Mr Sukhumbhand added he is ready to run for a second and final term, if his Democrat party chose him as their candidate.

The governor said he has planned to retire when he turns 64, at the end of his second term, if he wins, in order to spend time with his family.

Educated at Oxford University in England, Mr Sukhumbhand has been a MP of Democrat Party since 1996 and served as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs between 1997 and 2001.

On 11 January 2009, he was elected as the 15th Governor of Bangkok. At present he is also Deputy Secretary General of the Democrat Party. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-05-19

Wow, I learned a new word today.