Supporters are urging the Pheu Thai Party to speed up the process of establishing the new government they are poised to lead, while disregarding the agreement they have previously made with seven other parties to establish a coalition government together.
A group of red-shirt advocates, who call themselves the “Media Alliance for Democracy,” headed to the Pheu Thai headquarters on Tuesday to provide moral encouragement while the party wrestles with the establishment of a new government.
After the Move Forward Party (MFP), which surfaced as the leading party in the May 14 election, failed to seize control, Pheu Thai has stepped in to fill the role.
MFP’s leader, Pita Limjaroenrat, has been unsuccessful in securing the requisite Senate votes to ascend to the position of prime minister.
On Tuesday, the Pheu Thai Party, led by Chatchawal Kanchanahut and Jutipong Phummul, issued a statement expressing that the ongoing lack of administrative leadership is detrimental to the economy and inhibits the resolution of national issues.
There can be no more delays in the establishment of a new government, they declared.
Some MFP supporters have suggested delaying the parliamentary selection of a new prime minister for an extra 10 months.
At that point, the Senate’s term will end, removing any obstacles to Mr. Pita’s journey towards becoming the new prime minister.
However, the party insisted that people are currently struggling with the escalating cost of living, which demands immediate attention.
In a five-point recommendation to Pheu Thai, the faction asserted that the party is “100%” justified in making every possible effort to gather sufficient parliamentary support to realize a government without interference from other parties.
The party has faced criticism, particularly from MFP supporters, for considering parties from the previous government as potential coalition allies.
This includes the Palang Pracharath Party and the United Thai Nation Party, which MFP supporters have labeled remnants of the National Council for Peace and Order’s dictatorship.
The faction also upheld that Pheu Thai has the right to incorporate parties against amendments to the lese majeste law in the new government they’re working to establish. Amendment is an issue that MFP has strongly campaigned for.
The party argued that the memorandum of understanding about coalition government formation, which ties the MFP, Pheu Thai, and six other parties, should be abandoned now that the MFP is no longer tasked with forming a government.
Furthermore, one of the Pheu Thai Party’s potential prime ministerial candidates — Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Srettha Thavisin, and Chaikasem Nitisiri — must be nominated for parliamentary voting without any further delay.
Lastly and most importantly, the party highlighted that the top priority should be addressing economic problems.
