Former chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) Supant Mongkolsuthree has been appointed head of the Thai Sang Thai party’s economic team.

Chairwoman of the party, Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan, welcomed Supant into the party today (Monday) and introduced him to the media, saying that the party is pleased to have a man of such high calibre, experience and vision to lead the economic team.

According to Sudarat, Supant started his business as a small entrepreneur. He built and expanded the business into four companies listed on the stock market, with annual consolidated revenues of several tens of billions of baht, without the need of a state concession to support his business.

The former Pheu Thai party’s chief strategist also said that the former FTI chairman is the kind of person the party has been looking for who, she believes, can become a leader in restoring the Thai economy.

She said that the Thai Sang Thai party shares Supant’s objective to end the political divide and to spur the national economy.

Supant said he joined Thai Sang Thai party because not many businessmen have decided to enter politics and he wants to make use of his experience and expertise in the private sector to improve the country’s struggling economy.

He said he is fully aware of the economic problems and, if the party is to have a chance of being part of the government, he is confident that several problems will be tackled.

In the past, he said, the government and the private sector appear not to work smoothly as a team, citing COVID-19 vaccines as an example.

Sudarat formed the Thai Sang Thai party with several former MPs from Pheu Thai and other parties, after having left the biggest opposition party amid internal frictions.