23-9-2023 (BANGKOK) Bangkok’s Move Forward Party (MFP), which gained the highest number of seats in this year’s election, has appointed a temporary leader following the resignation of Pita Limjaroenrat, who was blocked from challenging the prime minister. Thai voters, disenchanted with nearly a decade of military-linked rule, threw their support behind the MFP in the May poll. However, conservatives prevented Pita from securing the prime minister’s position, and he was subsequently suspended as a Member of Parliament (MP).
Following the formation of a coalition government between Pheu Thai, the election’s runner-up, and some pro-military parties, Move Forward now finds itself in the opposition. Property mogul Srettha Thavisin was endorsed as the prime minister. According to current rules, the opposition leader must be an MP.
On Saturday, Chaithawat Tulathon, previously the party’s secretary-general, was elected as the MFP leader. Chaithawat, 44, clarified that this is a temporary restructuring due to legal reasons preventing Pita Limjaroenrat from assuming the role of opposition leader while serving as an MP. Chaithawat expressed his willingness to step down once Pita resumes his position in parliament.
Chaithawat, who studied environmental engineering, has been involved in Thailand’s progressive political movement for over five years and co-founded the MFP’s predecessor party.
In the meantime, Pita will take on the role of chief adviser for the party. He intends to travel across the nation and engage with international stakeholders until he can resume his duties as an MP.
Pita faced several political and legal challenges following the MFP’s surprising success in the May election. He withdrew from the race for prime minister after his initial attempt was thwarted by the junta-appointed Senate. His second chance was denied by parliamentarians. Conservative lawmakers were alarmed by the MFP’s plans to reform the country’s strict laws on royal insults.
The Constitutional Court, which had previously disqualified the billionaire leader of the MFP’s predecessor party, Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, as an MP in 2019, is now involved in the political landscape once again. Recently, the court banned Pannika Wanich, a prominent figure in the Move Forward Party, from politics for life, citing breaches of “ethical standards” based on decade-old photos deemed disrespectful to the revered monarchy.
