Prime Minister-elect Srettha Thavisin said today (Thursday) that he has asked the Office of the Council of State (OCS) to examine whether Phichit Chuenban is qualified for a ministerial post in his government.
He said expects to learn the result tomorrow and, if the OCS gives the greenlight, he will submit the cabinet line-up for royal approval right away.
Srettha said he asked the OCS specifically to consider Phichit’s case to eliminate any doubt.
Normally, the Cabinet Secretariat considers the qualifications and backgrounds of the people on a cabinet list.
Phichit, who has close ties with the Shinawatras as chief legal adviser, is tipped to be a PM’s Office Minister in Srettha-led government.
Phichit was added to the cabinet line-up at the last minute, on Tuesday, although Srettha had earlier confirmed that the line-up was complete.
Many believe that Phichit was given the post as part of the Shinawatra quota, when he was a lawyer, he worked closely with both Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra.
Phichit’s addition surprised many, considering he served six months in jail for contempt of court over the so-called “snack box” bribery scandal when he represented former PM Thaksin Shinawatra in 2008.
The case prompted the Law Society of Thailand to suspend Phichit’s law license for five years.
Phichit recently told BBC Thai that he did not reapply for the law license after serving the jail time, because he decided to enter the politics.
Phichit has argued that his imprisonment does not bar him from taking a ministerial post, because he was jailed by the court’s order, not as the result of a conviction.
Many question, however, whether it would be ethical for him to take the ministerial post.
After completing his jail term, Phichit became a party-list MP for Pheu Thai Party and was behind the party’s attempt to enact a blanket amnesty bill. The bill triggered massive protests, which were followed by a coup in 2104 that ousted then PM Yingluck Shinawatra.
Phichit became head of the legal defence team for Yingluck, who later fled Thailand.
