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Sep 13, 2008
And the next Thai PM is?
Three of the five potential candidates to become Thailand's next prime minister are (from left) Somchai Wongsawat, Surapong Suebwonglee and Sompong Amornwiwat. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
BANGKOK - THAILAND'S ruling coalition was left on Saturday scrambling for a credible candidate to lead the country, a day after Samak Sundaravej's bid to return as prime minister was snuffed out.
Lawmakers from the six-party coalition failed to show up to re-elect Mr Samak during an emergency session of parliament Friday, three days after a court stripped him of office for hosting TV cooking shows.
The People Power Party (PPP), the biggest party in the coalition, was not scheduled to meet on Saturday, but protests in Bangkok against the government were ongoing, the cause apparently given fresh impetus by Mr Samak's political demise.
An aide to Mr Samak told sources on Friday on condition of anonymity that the ex-premier had agreed to step aside for another candidate to seek the post, and to resign as PPP leader, after the virtual no-show.
With parliament scheduled to meet on Wednesday to decide on a new premier, three PPP senior figures have emerged to succeed Samak ? deputy leaders Somchai Wongsawat and Sompong Amornwiwat, and party secretary-general Surapong Suebwonglee.
However, anti-government protest leaders have previously said they will object to any prime minister drawn from the ranks of the PPP.
Analysts say the PPP will also be hard pushed to appease partners in the coalition government.
'They cannot start the new government with fundamental disagreements. You cannot form a coalition government when important coalitions are in disagreement on who should be prime minister', said Prof Michael Nelson, visiting professor at Chulalankorn University.
At least two of PPP's coalition partners and nearly one-third of the party's own lawmakers refused to back Mr Samak's re-election on Friday, and if the PPP cannot find an acceptable candidate by Wednesday the coalition could crumble.
Political analysts said the combative Samak, despite his unpopularity in some public quarters, will be hard to replace because he is one of the few Thai politicians willing to openly confront top figures in the palace and the military.
'Later on people might propose an outsider but the problem is the constitution requires that the prime minister is a (member of parliament),' political analyst Thitinan Pognsudhirak said.
Mr Samak's decision to bow out less than nine months after his victory in general elections will likely embolden protesters, who have besieged the prime minister's office for more than two weeks in a campaign to force out him and his cabinet.
But there was no sign on Saturday they were stopping with Mr Samak's departure.
Some 5,300 protesters, who roughly represent Thailand's traditional elite, celebrated into the early hours, said police spokesman Major General Surapol Tuanthong.
The protesters claimed that Mr Samak was a proxy for ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
The leading protest group, which calls itself the People's Alliance for Democracy, is also pushing a broader agenda to scale back Thailand's democracy by reducing the influence of poor, rural voters, who gave Mr Thaksin steadfast support for providing universal health care and low-interest loans.
PAD spearheaded protests against Mr Thaksin in 2006, leading to the military coup that toppled him.
A look at the potential candidates:
Somchai Wongsawat
The current acting prime minister's qualifications and long bureaucratic experience - including more than 20 years as a judge - could be overshadowed by his family ties: He is the brother-in-law of disgraced former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Despite that association, the leader of the protest movement that campaigned to bring down Mr Thaksin and Mr Samak has said Mr Somchai, 61, would be an acceptable new prime minister.
He is a low profile and uncontroversial figure who was a deputy prime minister and education minister in Mr Samak's Cabinet.
Sompong Amornwiwat
The second of the 'Three S's' whose names have been put forward by the ruling People's Power Party as possible candidates, he is the product of a family of policemen and northern Thai politicians.
Currently, the justice minister, he was once a successful businessman.
Mr Sompong, 68, has also held Cabinet posts for transport, labour and industry in previous governments.
Surapong Suebwonglee
A medical doctor by training, Mr Surapong, 51, is the nominee most closely associated with Mr Thaksin's political legacy.
But protest leader Sondhi Limthongkul has suggested that the finance minister would be an acceptable choice.
Unlike Mr Somchai and Mr Sompong, who are relatively colourless bureaucrats, he has an easy manner with the press and fellow politicians.
He was deputy health minister in Mr Thaksin's first government, and is associated with one of Mr Thaksin's more popular programmes: low cost universal health care.
He also served as minister of information and communications technology.
Banharn Silpa-Archa
A former prime minister and head of the Chart Thai Party, the second biggest party in Mr Samak's coalition, his nickname is 'The Eel' for his party's ability to slide from one side of the political spectrum to the other as is convenient to join in the spoils of government.
Critics say alleged corruption and mismanagement of the economy during his 16-month stint as prime minister in the 1990s paved the way for the collapse of Thailand's currency, sparking the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
Mr Sondhi has indicated his protest movement would not accept his selection.
Abhisit Vejjajiva
The leader of the Democrat Party, the only opposition group in Parliament, Mr Abhisit, 44, was born in England and educated at Eton and Oxford.
Critics say he is out of touch with ordinary people, particularly the rural majority, and that he lacks charisma.
His party's supporters include Bangkok's middle class, influential military figures and foreign investors who see it as a stabilising force.
Deemed acceptable by protest leader Sondhi, he could form a new coalition with Mr Samak's allies, freezing out the People's Power Party.
He has also expressed a willingness to lead an all-party, nonpartisan 'national unity' government. -- AFP, AP
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Who is people's choice for the post??
Sep 13, 2008
And the next Thai PM is?
Three of the five potential candidates to become Thailand's next prime minister are (from left) Somchai Wongsawat, Surapong Suebwonglee and Sompong Amornwiwat. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
BANGKOK - THAILAND'S ruling coalition was left on Saturday scrambling for a credible candidate to lead the country, a day after Samak Sundaravej's bid to return as prime minister was snuffed out.
Lawmakers from the six-party coalition failed to show up to re-elect Mr Samak during an emergency session of parliament Friday, three days after a court stripped him of office for hosting TV cooking shows.
The People Power Party (PPP), the biggest party in the coalition, was not scheduled to meet on Saturday, but protests in Bangkok against the government were ongoing, the cause apparently given fresh impetus by Mr Samak's political demise.
An aide to Mr Samak told sources on Friday on condition of anonymity that the ex-premier had agreed to step aside for another candidate to seek the post, and to resign as PPP leader, after the virtual no-show.
With parliament scheduled to meet on Wednesday to decide on a new premier, three PPP senior figures have emerged to succeed Samak ? deputy leaders Somchai Wongsawat and Sompong Amornwiwat, and party secretary-general Surapong Suebwonglee.
However, anti-government protest leaders have previously said they will object to any prime minister drawn from the ranks of the PPP.
Analysts say the PPP will also be hard pushed to appease partners in the coalition government.
'They cannot start the new government with fundamental disagreements. You cannot form a coalition government when important coalitions are in disagreement on who should be prime minister', said Prof Michael Nelson, visiting professor at Chulalankorn University.
At least two of PPP's coalition partners and nearly one-third of the party's own lawmakers refused to back Mr Samak's re-election on Friday, and if the PPP cannot find an acceptable candidate by Wednesday the coalition could crumble.
Political analysts said the combative Samak, despite his unpopularity in some public quarters, will be hard to replace because he is one of the few Thai politicians willing to openly confront top figures in the palace and the military.
'Later on people might propose an outsider but the problem is the constitution requires that the prime minister is a (member of parliament),' political analyst Thitinan Pognsudhirak said.
Mr Samak's decision to bow out less than nine months after his victory in general elections will likely embolden protesters, who have besieged the prime minister's office for more than two weeks in a campaign to force out him and his cabinet.
But there was no sign on Saturday they were stopping with Mr Samak's departure.
Some 5,300 protesters, who roughly represent Thailand's traditional elite, celebrated into the early hours, said police spokesman Major General Surapol Tuanthong.
The protesters claimed that Mr Samak was a proxy for ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
The leading protest group, which calls itself the People's Alliance for Democracy, is also pushing a broader agenda to scale back Thailand's democracy by reducing the influence of poor, rural voters, who gave Mr Thaksin steadfast support for providing universal health care and low-interest loans.
PAD spearheaded protests against Mr Thaksin in 2006, leading to the military coup that toppled him.
A look at the potential candidates:
Somchai Wongsawat
The current acting prime minister's qualifications and long bureaucratic experience - including more than 20 years as a judge - could be overshadowed by his family ties: He is the brother-in-law of disgraced former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Despite that association, the leader of the protest movement that campaigned to bring down Mr Thaksin and Mr Samak has said Mr Somchai, 61, would be an acceptable new prime minister.
He is a low profile and uncontroversial figure who was a deputy prime minister and education minister in Mr Samak's Cabinet.
Sompong Amornwiwat
The second of the 'Three S's' whose names have been put forward by the ruling People's Power Party as possible candidates, he is the product of a family of policemen and northern Thai politicians.
Currently, the justice minister, he was once a successful businessman.
Mr Sompong, 68, has also held Cabinet posts for transport, labour and industry in previous governments.
Surapong Suebwonglee
A medical doctor by training, Mr Surapong, 51, is the nominee most closely associated with Mr Thaksin's political legacy.
But protest leader Sondhi Limthongkul has suggested that the finance minister would be an acceptable choice.
Unlike Mr Somchai and Mr Sompong, who are relatively colourless bureaucrats, he has an easy manner with the press and fellow politicians.
He was deputy health minister in Mr Thaksin's first government, and is associated with one of Mr Thaksin's more popular programmes: low cost universal health care.
He also served as minister of information and communications technology.
Banharn Silpa-Archa
A former prime minister and head of the Chart Thai Party, the second biggest party in Mr Samak's coalition, his nickname is 'The Eel' for his party's ability to slide from one side of the political spectrum to the other as is convenient to join in the spoils of government.
Critics say alleged corruption and mismanagement of the economy during his 16-month stint as prime minister in the 1990s paved the way for the collapse of Thailand's currency, sparking the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
Mr Sondhi has indicated his protest movement would not accept his selection.
Abhisit Vejjajiva
The leader of the Democrat Party, the only opposition group in Parliament, Mr Abhisit, 44, was born in England and educated at Eton and Oxford.
Critics say he is out of touch with ordinary people, particularly the rural majority, and that he lacks charisma.
His party's supporters include Bangkok's middle class, influential military figures and foreign investors who see it as a stabilising force.
Deemed acceptable by protest leader Sondhi, he could form a new coalition with Mr Samak's allies, freezing out the People's Power Party.
He has also expressed a willingness to lead an all-party, nonpartisan 'national unity' government. -- AFP, AP
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Who is people's choice for the post??
but how clean will the next election be??? Hopefully, not merry-go-round again :(
