The Future Forward party has been planning its censure debate against Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha since last October and has codenamed their strategy “Project Pinocchio”, party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit told a news conference today at the party’s head office.
He explained the name, saying that this fictional character was always making mistakes and tried to cover up his mistakes until, in the end, the accumulated errors became so overwhelming that they could no longer be hidden.
Thanathorn likened the blunders of this Government to those committed by Pinocchio, but the Prime Minister, who has never been subjected to examination, has tried to hide the mistakes behind national security or has blamed corruption.
“The main aim of Project Pinocchio is to remove the mask and expose the blunders of the Government over the past six years,” said Thanathorn.
The flamboyant Future Forward party leader cannot, however, take part in the censure debate because has been stripped of his parliamentary status by the Constitutional Court over his media share ownership at the time his candidacy registration.
Four other ministers are also to be targeted for censure by the Opposition between February 24th and 26th. They are Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngarm, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan, Interior Minister Anupong Paochinda and Deputy Agriculture Minister Thammanat Prompao.
The Constitutional Court, meanwhile, is due to decide the fate of the Future Forward party on February 21st in the case of a 191 million baht loan it accepted from Thanathorn.
If the court decides to dissolve the party on that day, all its executive committee members who are MPs will be stripped of their parliamentary status and banned from politics, but its other MPs could still take part in the debate.
Meanwhile, a group of Future Forward party members, led by deputy leader Ms. Kulthida Roongruangkiart, lodged a complaint against Prime Minister Prayut today with the Election Commission’s Office for allegedly violating the election law over an incident last year.
The group charge that, during a campaign rally for the Palang Pracharat party in the Thephasdin stadium, the Prime Minister, then a candidate for leadership of the party, took to the stage to sing two songs which did not relate to the election.
The group allege this amounted to entertainment, which is against the election law.
