The leader of Thailand’s primary opposition party has issued a warning that impending court rulings this month might lead to the dissolution of his party and the potential removal of the prime minister, risking instability in the country’s economy.
Pita Limjaroenrat, the head of the reformist Move Forward Party, which won last year’s election but was blocked from forming a government, stated in an interview that the upcoming court cases could ignite “quite a political inferno here in Thailand.”
Next week, supreme constitutional judges are set to decide on the potential disbandment of the Move Forward Party, which faces allegations of electoral violations related to its campaign to revise a strict royal defamation law.
Subsequently, the supreme court will determine if Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin should be ousted for an alleged ethical breach.
Actions against either man could plunge the country back into political chaos, especially during a period when its government is already struggling with a faltering economy.
“It’s safe to assume that democracy in Thailand is on the defense,” Mr. Pita, aged 43, commented during his interview with Bloomberg News on Thursday.
Following last summer’s election, the nation’s conservative forces thwarted Mr. Pita’s attempts to establish a government.
Despite these obstacles, Move Forward has maintained its popularity, with Mr. Pita still favored for the role of prime minister.
If the constitutional court decides to prohibit the party and banish him from the political scene, Mr. Pita anticipates protests, though he suspects they won’t reach the magnitude of those triggered by the 2020 dissolution of Future Forward, a predecessor of Move Forward.
Based on this experience, Mr. Pita believes that forming a new party this time would be more straightforward. “Regardless of what the name would be, ‘Leap Forward Party’ or whatever, it doesn’t matter much,” he added.
If he is banned, it would be the responsibility of the new party’s assembly to select a leader, with Move Forward’s deputy, Sirikanya Tansakun, being a potential nominee.
She’s “quite an accomplished economist, having graduated in France and worked in the fiscal and macro policy space throughout her life,” he said. “She would be a great candidate, but not the only candidate.”
Market Turmoil
The likelihood of political disruption is poised to further burden the national economy, which has experienced years of weak growth.
The Thai stock market, one of the least successful globally over the past year, could see an accelerated withdrawal of foreign investors due to renewed instability.
Earlier on Thursday, the government initiated registration for beneficiaries under a new 500 billion baht cash handout program, which Mr. Srettha hopes will jump-start economic growth. However, these plans may fall apart if he is ousted.
Mr. Pita isn’t the only one facing legal challenges. Thaksin Shinawatra, a two-time former prime minister perceived as the unofficial head of Mr. Srettha’s ruling Pheu Thai Party, was recently charged in a royal insult case dating back to a 2015 interview.
The court seized Thaksin’s passport and mandated his presence on August 19, when it will start examining the evidence in the case.
For now, Mr. Pita sees no potential alliance with Thaksin’s party, which has allied with the military-backed regime to form a coalition government. According to Mr. Pita, Mr. Srettha has thus far been an underperforming leader.
“It’s not a natural alliance,” Mr. Pita stated, noting that the current situation clearly shows the fragmentation or fracture in the ruling government.
