Move Forward party leader Pita Limjaroenrat is confident that a majority government, comprised of at least six parties on the liberal wing, will be formed.
He spoke to the media after emerging from a two-hour discussion with key party members at the party’s head office today (Wednesday), among them Phicharn Chaowapatanawong, Sirikanya Tansakul and Chaithawat Tulathong.
After the meeting, Pita led key party members to meet representatives of the other five potential coalition partners, namely the Pheu Thai, Thai Sang Thai, Fair, Prachachart and Thai Liberal parties, at a restaurant on Sukhothai Road in Bangkok’s Dusit district, to discuss the formation of a coalition government.
A press conference update on the discussions is scheduled for tomorrow, said Chaithawat.
Meanwhile, Chaowarit Kachornpongkirati, leader of the Palang Sangkhom Mai party, told the media today that he had been approached by a deputy leader of Move Forward to join the coalition and he accepted the offer.
Palang Sangkhom Mai won only one party-list seat in the general election.
The inclusion of Palang Sangkhom Mai will increase the number of potential parties in a coalition to six, which will command 311 votes in the 500-member Lower House.
The numbers are more than enough to form a government, but still short of the 376 votes needed to ensure the approval of Pita as the next prime minister at a joint sitting of the Senate and the House.
Rangsiman Rome, spokesman for Move Forward party, told the media today that, what the party is doing now is “switching off” Section 272 of the Constitution which, essentially, asserts the Senate’s powers in the appointment of the Thai prime minister by requiring a nominee to receive the approval of more than half of the votes of the two Houses combined.
The party-list MP-elect said that the potential coalition, led by Move Forward, now has more than 310 votes in the House, which will make the government politically stable and able to implement the policies announced during the election campaign.
The big question being asked now is why the voice of the people would not be respected, said Rangsiman, as the potential liberal coalition can muster more than 310 votes in the House.
The Move Forward spokesman maintains that forming a government and effectively negating the need for sizeable senate support are two separate issues, noting that Section 272 should not have been included in the Constitution in the first place.
He said that the party has, however, got people in contact with some senators in an attempt to persuade them to lend their support to Pita as prime minister, but he declined to name who they are.
He also said that the Move Forward party and its leader are ready to be examined by the Senate over what some may see as controversial issues, such as its policy to amend the lèse majesté law and Pita’s share ownership in the ITV broadcasting company.
