THAI PM SURVIVES CRUCIAL LEGAL CHALLENGE TO REMAIN IN OFFICE

Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, under pressure from months of street protests, survived a legal challenge on Wednesday over his living arrangements that could have seen him thrown out of office.

The kingdom’s nine-judge constitutional court ruled that Prayut was not guilty of conflict of interest by living in an army residence after leaving the military. The court ruled that Prayut’s status as prime minister entitled him to live in the house even though he stepped down as army chief in 2014.

The ruling, though widely expected, is likely to inflame the protest movement that has shaken Thailand since July calling for Prayut, who came to power in a 2014 coup, to quit.

As the judgment was read out, about 3,000 protesters massed for a fresh rally at a major intersection in northern Bangkok. They included uniformed high school students wearing hair clips in the shape of rubber ducks, a symbol of the pro-democracy movement.