PM mulls move to UTN
Prayut-Prawit meeting points to party switch
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said he is considering a move to join the newly-established United Thai Nation Party (UTN) or Ruam Thai Sang Chart.
He opened up about the matter for the first time yesterday as the rumour mill went into overdrive about his move to the party.
Asked by reporters whether he had applied for party membership, Gen Prayut said: “I am still considering it.’’
He refused to comment when pressed for an answer on his political future. He only said: “It will become clear next year.’’
UTN leader Pirapan Salirathavibhaga, a former Democrat MP, who serves as an adviser to the prime minister, yesterday denied Gen Prayut applied for party membership on Monday as some reports claimed.
Mr Pirapan previously said the UTN would welcome Gen Prayut if he decided to leave the ruling Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP).
The UTN was founded in March last year by Seksakol Atthawong, a former aide to the prime minister, to back Gen Prayut’s return as PM after the next election, if he so wishes.
The likelihood of Gen Prayut moving to the UTN gained momentum after he reportedly met Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon, the PPRP’s leader, at the office of the Foundation for the Conservation of Forests in Five Adjoining Provinces in the compound of the 1st Infantry Regiment in Bangkok last Sunday.
Gen Prayut is believed to have informed Gen Prawit of his plan to switch parties ahead of the coming general election.
Sayant Yutitham, a PPRP MP for Nakhon Si Thammarat, said several party MPs were considering whether to stay put or defect to the UTN.
He said that while he has been well looked after by Gen Prawit, it was Gen Prayut’s popularity that helped him win the House seat.
“If Gen Prayut decides to join the UTN, I will also follow in his footsteps and join the party,’’ Mr Sayant said.
He added that at least three MPs for Songkhla were willing to defect to the UTN to support Gen Prayut.
“I informed Gen Prawit of my intention and he did not have any objection. We’re only waiting for Gen Prayut to make his political stance clear,’’ Mr Sayant said, adding he believed he could retain his House seat in the next election as Gen Prayut’s popularity ratings in the South are still high.
Deputy Prime Minister and Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul denied talk that he struck a deal with Gen Prayut to take turns serving as prime minister for two years each.
“There is no such deal,’’ Mr Anutin said. If Gen Prayut is re-elected by parliament as prime minister after the next election expected in the first half of next year, Gen Prayut could only serve as PM for another two years as his premiership will end in 2025.
Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam gave his assurance yesterday there is no reason for the prime minister to dissolve the House on Nov 30 or after, no matter how the Constitutional Court rules on an organic law on the elections of MPs.
The court will rule next Wednesday on the constitutionality of the bill which governs the elections of MPs. One of the most contentious points is whether the bill is in conflict with Section 93 of the charter, which governs how party-list MPs are decided.
Mr Wissanu said the court’s ruling on Nov 30 has nothing to do with whether or not the prime minister will dissolve the House.
He also guaranteed the premier will not call the House dissolution on Nov 30 because he has several engagements on that day.
When asked if the House dissolution could take place later, Mr Wissanu said: “You should come back and ask me again after that. But I can assure you it isn’t happening on Nov 30.
“If the court rules that the bill isn’t against the charter, why bother to dissolve the House?
And even if the court says the bill is unconstitutional, what does a House dissolution lead to? There simply isn’t a reason to do so (dissolve the House),” he said.
Mr Wissanu’s remarks came as the Constitutional Court ruled unanimously yesterday that another organic bill on political parties does not contravene the charter.
The contentious points in that bill deal with membership fees of political parties, the qualifications of party members and the candidate selection process known as primary voting.
The organic bill seeks to lower the annual membership fee from 100 baht to 20 baht and the lifelong membership fee from 2,000 baht to 200 baht.
This is seen by critics as opening the way for investors to dominate political parties.
On the qualifications of party members, the bill proposes that people charged with fraud, drug offences, gambling, human trafficking or money laundering can apply as long as they have not served any time locked up in prison.
As for primary voting, the bill seeks to allow provincial committees of a party to nominate election candidates, a process which is currently carried out by a constituency-level panel.
The proposed change was thought to contravene the charter’s principle promoting wider public participation in the candidate selection process.