Move As it tries to rule, Forward is under pressure to drop suggested royal reforms.
On Sunday, June 4, at Bangkok’s Pride parade, Pita Limjaroenrat’s followers were unsure of how to address the 42-year-old politician as he took the stage wearing a vividly colored blouse. Some shouted, “Mr. Prime Minister!” but their companions rebuked them, saying, “I don’t think you can call him that yet.”
Three weeks after his party achieved history-making electoral success in Thailand, Pita is still running for office. He’s got to.
In a typical democracy, Pita would already be in power in Thailand. In the general election on May 14, his Move Forward Party garnered 14 million votes and 151 seats. The Move Forward tidal reflects a crushing blow to nine years of military administration, together with seats obtained by partner parties.
However, while Thailand’s elite grudgingly considers allowing democracy to run its course. Pita is still out in the streets shaking hands with fans and members of interest groups instead of setting up his office in Bangkok’s Government House and selecting a cabinet.
In a display of togetherness on Sunday amid internal strife in their new alliance, he grinned for photos alongside Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who had been his main competitor for the position of premier. In search of elusive evidence that he would be able to assume office, supporters and journalists alike formed a lengthy selfie line and crowded the area around him with media as usual. The victory of Thailand’s young and progressive opposition, Move Forward, marks a turning point in that country’s sluggish fight for constitutional democracy. When Paetongtarn’s father Thaksin Shinawatra was elected prime minister in 2001, things really got started. However, he was ultimately ousted by coups and political forces with military affiliations. Every election since, Thaksin’s Pheu Thai Party has won the most seats, and this year, they were expected to repeat that feat.
Pita’s Move Forward Party, however, took up the pro-democracy cause last month after shockingly defeating the military-dominated status quo by obtaining 151 seats. Less than 20% of the seats were won by parties with military affiliation in the May election, giving the men in khaki a sobering reminder that their time has past. Pita stated that the election was really about inequality in Thailand in an interview. He claimed that during the administration of Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, who seized power in a 2014 coup, the gap between the rich and the poor has become wider.
Pita told, “It’s like we’re learning to ride a bike and this paternalistic person who thinks they know better than the people keeps trying to knock us off the bike, so our economic system cannot really prosper. He asserted that structural transformation, beginning with constitutional amendment, decentralized governance, and monopoly busting, is Move Forward’s response to rising inequality.”If you look back 40 years, trickle-down economics was how we created our system. Although we urged foreigners to export and invest, the domestic economy did not grow too much. We grew as a result, but inequality increased even more quickly, he claimed.
After winning on May 14 in the late evening, Move Forward wasted no time. In front of the international media the following morning, Pita was announcing his triumph and stating that he was prepared to serve as “prime minister for all, whether you agree with me or disagree with me.”
His staff started reaching out to seven pro-democracy parties right away in order to establish a coalition government. He has been negotiating a shared agenda and ministerial portfolios with the coalition for the last three weeks. In an effort to calm markets agitated by Move Forward’s antimonopoly and energy restructuring measures, he visited with industry and professional groups.
Pita assured that the changeover would go smoothly. “When I enter Government House one day, there won’t be any surprises.” But Prayuth’s caretaker administration is hesitant to relinquish control. Pita’s transition team received criticism from the current prime minister in late May for collecting information from departments.
Prayuth remarked, “That is not appropriate. “Civil servants are still employed by the current administration. It will be your business in the future.
Many people doubt that any kind of change will ever occur. Pita’s coalition still has a long way to go before he can assume office despite its mandate. He must first wait at least 60 days as the Election Commission scrutinizes every minute detail of the decisive election that saw a record-breaking 75% turnout. Pita’s party has less sway as time goes on, and the likelihood that some insignificant detail will be discovered to overturn Move Forward’s triumph rises. Pita must also persuade a large number of senators to support him.
An old-timer told that he didn’t think Pita could get enough support from the military-appointed senate to become president. The idea of a Move Forward government was also called “nuts” by a senior courtier close to King Maha Vajiralongkorn, the supreme ruler of the nation, who projected a protracted caretaker period under Prayuth.
The day following the election, Pita stated, “I’m not worried, but I’m not careless. But with the consensus that came out of the election, it will be quite a hefty price to pay for someone who is thinking of abolishing the election results or forming a minority government.”
Thailand’s troubled history
Since a coup in 1932 ended Siam’s absolute monarchy, Prayuth, the third longest-serving prime minister, has resided in Government House, a massive Venetian gothic building from the 1920s, since 2014. Following a general election in 2019 held under Thailand’s 22nd constitution, which was designed by the military and promulgated in 2017, Prayuth was reinstated as prime minister.
