In Thailand, Pita’s PM bid stumbles as progressive-conservative showdown looms

A coalition of eight parties led by the progressive Move Forward Party is ready and raring to form a new government, but lacks the votes needed for PM

Pita Limjaroenrat’s bid to become Thailand’s 30th prime minister could yet be thwarted by conservatives and an army-drafted constitution, experts say

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Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat has been criss-crossing the country addressing large rallies and insisting he alone has the legitimacy to govern. Photo: Sopa Images via Zuma Press Wire/dpa

Published: 1:34pm, 12 Jul 2023Updated: 3:59pm, 12 Jul 2023

Thailand enters a crucial few days that will decide if a pro-democracy coalition led by Pita Limjaroenrat can form a government, or whether diehard conservatives will defy the votes of 14 million people and block his path to the prime minister’s office.

The Thai electorate gave a withering verdict on nine years of the military-aligned government of Prayuth Chan-ocha in the May 14 elections, swinging behind the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP), which now leads a coalition of eight parties as the government-in-waiting.

Prayuth, who carried out a 2014 coup as army chief and then rebranded as a civilian leader, announced his “retirement from politics” on Tuesday after a desultory poll performance that saw his United Thai Nation party win just 36 of 500 seats in the elected House of Representatives.

Thailand’s caretaker Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha arrives to cast his vote during May’s general election. The former military general, coup leader and junta chief announced on Tuesday that he was leaving politics. Photo: AP

Over his nine years in office, he repeatedly promised to step down, but instead pushed on through large protests against his government and weak economic results that saw household debt surge even as the billionaires who dominate Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy get richer.

“This could be the end of the road for Prayuth in politics,” said Napon Jatusripitak, a visiting fellow at the Singapore-based ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.

But in a country where coups have occurred every seven years, on average, since 1932, experts warn that it does not mean the army is heading for the exit doors of power, especially when it is tasked with protecting Thailand’s apex institution: the monarchy.

Pita’s progress towards becoming Thailand’s 30th prime minister is likely to be thwarted by a constitution specifically designed to leave the door ajar for the conservative camp in the event of its defeat at the polls, observers say.