Former Palang Pracharath (PPRP) party-list MP Watanya Bunnag, aka “Madame Dear”, officially joined the Democrat party today (Thursday) and received a warm welcome from party leader Jurin Laksanawisit and other executive members.

Jurin, also a deputy prime minister, said that it was an honour to welcome a new-generation politician with high potential like Watanya, who will help strengthen the party’s team in Bangkok.

He said that Watanya had expressed her wish to take part in the next election as a party-list candidate under the Democrat party’s banner.

The MP quit the PPRP in mid-August in protest against what she alleged to be a lack of responsibility taken by legislators for the lack of a quorum, rendering a joint sitting of parliament, to consider an election bill, to be adjourned.

She told the media that she had neither set any pre-conditions on joining the Democrat party nor had demanded that her name should be put in the top ten party-list candidates.

Jurin said, however, that the party will review its list of party-list candidates again at an appropriate time.

After leaving the PPRP, Watanya said that she had spent about a month considering which party she would join and, finally, chose the Democrat party because she has faith in the party as a political institution for the last 76 years.

She said that, although she had left the PPRP, she still has respect for the party leader, Acting Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan.

Asked whether some of her former colleagues in the PPRP will follow in her footsteps and join the Democrat party, she said each of them should be able to decide for themselves.