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A Herculean task awaits the next Pheu Thai leader ❖ A pro-regime party is lurking in shadows until the time is ripe ❖ From anti-establishment protest leader to deputy Bangkok governor, Sakoltee shows he is politically savvy and up to the job
It will be tough at the top
The next Pheu Thai Party leader will carry on his or her shoulders some of the heaviest burdens any of their predecessors have had to endure — boosting the morale of party members and stemming the outflow of defectors.
These tasks are likely to rest with Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan, the most promising candidate for the party leadership to date, according to a source familiar with the issue.
She has been telling members to band together, keep spirits buoyed and not to be perturbed by the departure of heavyweight former MPs reportedly to a pro-regime political party.
“Hang in there. Be strong. We need to be here in this [party] together for a long time to come,” Khunying Sudarat was quoted as saying to some ex-Pheu Thai MPs.
However, the source said the road ahead for Khunying Sudarat, if she takes the helm of the party, will not be strewn with roses. She would have to re-energise and restore members’ morale in the build-up to what has been forecast to be one of the Pheu Thai’s toughest election battles early next year.
Already, several former MPs have complained they have been neglected by the party, which has come across as being halfhearted in preparing for the next poll and not caring about its members.
One former MP based in the Northeast vented his frustration at the absence of the “means” with which former MPs were once regularly provided.
The former MP said the party would only have itself to blame if its former MPs in the Northeast succumbed to political poaching and left the party.
At the same time, Pheu Thai appears less than enthusiastic about contesting the next election. Some critics said they were under the impression that Pheu Thai is slowly losing its political lustre and the magnetism it once had to bind its members together.
The party may have arrived at a point where it has resigned itself to the prospect of the next election not being held in February despite the National Council for National Peace and Order (NCPO) insisting it will.
The critics said Pheu Thai may be assessing its strength compared to that of the proregime party, to see who between them will clinch an election victory.
Some political experts contend the odds do not look to be in Pheu Thai’s favour given this new party’s rapidly expanding support from former MPs of different parties being snugged under its wings.
Wary of the major hurdles to overcome if she becomes Pheu Thai leader, Khunying Sudarat has been the subject of a recent rumour that she has thrown in the towel and plans to quit Pheu Thai to form her own party.
The rumour was apparently damaging her standing as a potential Pheu Thai leader. She immediately sent her close aide, Anudith Nakhornthap, who is a former party MP for Bangkok, to deliver a briefing to quash what her supporters consider to be malicious gossip.
The party source said Khunying Sudarat may take comfort in the knowledge she still has the backing of fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who is hailed as the party’s most powerful figure whom most Pheu Thai members listen to and respect.
She is also said to be cosying up to Thaksin’s former wife, Khunying Potjaman Na Pombejra, who is another commanding influence in the party.
However, Khunying Sudarat has her fair share of opponents within the party, too.
Certain factions are split over Khunying Sudarat’s possible rise to the party’s top post, which may explain why she has had to win them over by demonstrating she has the acumen as well as the guts to get the job done.
She has been a vocal critic of the NCPO, taking the regime to task for being the No.1 enemy of democracy. Her staunch, antiregime position could be reassuring for some Pheu Thai members who are considering defecting, but it might not be enough to make them stay put, according to the critics.
Political cats wait to pounce
W hile the masterminds pulling the strings behind a military-backed political party are currently away with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in the UK and France, the temperature at the local political market is rising.
Political observers are busy keeping tabs on who is in and who is out, following media reports early this week that the Pheu Thai Party faces the prospect of losing almost half of its former MPs in the Northeast to a new pro-regime outfit, widely believed to be the Phalang Pracharat Party.
Of the 126 House seats in the region that were up for grabs in the previous election, Pheu Thai secured 104. One political source has described this as “a sign the floodgates are breaking”.
The gossip round-up about political defections later in the week includes three veteran politicians based in Nakhon Ratchasima.
Wirat Rattanaseth, Thassaneeya Rattanaseth and Athirat Rattanaseth are rumoured to be switching allegiances thanks to their close affiliations with Preecha Rengsomboonsuk, a former Pheu Thai MP for Loei who has reportedly formed an alliance with key government figures.
However, no individual from the Prayut government has yet stepped forward to take credit for recruiting new members for the pro-regime party.
Commerce Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong, who is tipped to assume the post of its secretary-general, distanced himself when confronted by the media, who spotted him having a “friendly chat” with veteran politician Anucha Nakhasai during a recent mobile cabinet meeting in Nakhon Sawan.
“It’s not up to me when the party takes shape,” he was quoted as saying when asked about the recruitment campaign.
Mr Anucha, who is based in the central province of Chai Nat, is said to be close to a group calling itself the “Three Companions”, which comprises Suriya Jungrungreangkit, a former transport minister; Sukhothai politician Somsak Thepsuthin, leader of Wang Nam Yom faction; and Mr Preecha.
The group is said to be the recruiting arm of the regime.
According to political observers, these key players have distanced themselves from the new party to avoid “premature” attacks from political rivals.
They do not know when the restrictions on political activities will be eased. Under the new organic laws on elections, there are several requirements for political parties to fulfil, such as a primary vote. Revealing the number of politicians who have defected ahead of time would surely invite early attacks.
More importantly, they are still not certain if the general election will take place in February next year as promised by the regime.
Despite earlier assurances about the February poll, speculation is rife that it may be pushed back two months to April due to the time-frame imposed by an organic bill on the election of MPs.
The bill, which is awaiting royal endorsement after it was cleared by the Constitutional Court, will not go into effect until 90 days after it has been endorsed by His Majesty the King and published in the Royal Gazette.
Meanwhile, military top brass based in the provinces are also said to be getting involved in the action.
According to political sources, these senior officers are making house visits and sending out invitations to target politicians, asking them to join hands and work with the government for a better future.
The military officers, according to the sources, can be very persuasive and several of their targeted politicians have reportedly expressed interest in closing ranks.
Sakoltee settles in at City Hall
I t did not take long for former Democrat Party MP and ex-protest leader Sakoltee Phattiyakul to settle into his new job as deputy Bangkok governor.
In a matter of few months, he has managed to learn the ropes to meet the expectations of the City of Angels’ residents.
He had to face his baptism of fire when he was put in charge of clearing up heaps of uncollected garbage in public parks, on the streets and in many small alleys in Bangkok. He fared quite well, winning plaudits from residents, a source close to him said.
Another task is to improve the street lighting in a bid to curb crime in residential areas in Bangkok, the source said.
Showing confidence in his new job, the young deputy city governor has been getting some good press for his new role and has won a bunch of new admirers, in addition to those who have been his staunch supporters since he served as a Democrat MP for Bangkok.
Still, he has a tough test to go through when he has to handle requests submitted by business entrepreneurs for signposts giving directions to their restaurants and shops, the source said.
Stressing the need to follow the rules, he explained to them that City Hall currently does not give permission for such signposts to be erected on streets, as was the case previously.
In light of this, those business operators turned to some of Bangkok’s district offices and lobbied them for what they wanted. It remains to be seen how the new deputy governor will deal with these vested interests, the source said.
On April 10, Bangkok governor Pol Gen Aswin Kwanmuang appointed Mr Sakoltee as his deputy, replacing Pol Gen Chinthat Meesuk, who now serves as an adviser to the Bangkok governor instead.
Mr Sakoltee’s appointment followed a reported meeting he had with Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak at Government House on April 3, another source said previously.
Other former Democrat MPs present at the meeting were Natthapol Theepsuwan and Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, the source said. Both politicians later denied Mr Somkid had used the meeting in April to discuss setting up a military-backed political party to support Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha should he wish to stay on as premier after the election.
The meeting, they said, dealt with matters related to the government’s flagship Eastern Economic Corridor project.
The source said Mr Sakoltee’s acceptance of the deputy governor post surprised many because he had shown himself to be an active Democrat.
Indeed, Mr Sokoltee had validated his Democrat membership, a compulsory step for maintaining political party status, on April 1 — the very first day of membership validation. Thus many Democrat figures were bemused as Mr Sakoltee tiptoed from the party and waltzed into his new role at City Hall.
Mr Sakoltee simply explained that he saw his new job as a chance to gain experience running city affairs.
He declined to say what party he was contemplating joining in the future, the source said.
He is the son of Gen Vinai Phattiyakul, former secretary-general of the National Security Council, who is well connected and highly regarded in the intelligence community.
Mr Sakoltee was one of the leaders of the now-dissolved People’s Democratic Reform Committee, charged with joining a political gathering of more than 10 people in violation of the emergency decree under the government of fugitive former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra.