March 25, 2024
BANGKOK – Minister Manaporn Charoensri on Sunday said that Thaksin’s visit to the Pheu Thai party would be good for the morale of MPs as several of them have a close relationship with the ex-PM.
Manaporn, who is also a lawmaker under the Pheu Thai banner, said that Thaksin’s appearance would merely be to meet the party’s members, and he would not be involved in the weekly meeting to prepare for parliamentary debate.
“Thaksin is widely respected. This is not an attempt to dominate the party, because any management or other decisions need to be made by the party’s executives,” she added.
According to reports, Thaksin will arrive at Pheu Thai party headquarters in Bangkok’s Huai Khwang district at around 1.45 pm. MPs will be grouped by the provinces they represent while they meet the former leader.
This ex-premier’s scheduled visit follows his trip to attend religious activities in Chiang Mai, where he met several prominent political figures, namely current PM Srettha Thavisin, ex-PM Somchai Wongsawat, and Agricultural Minister Thamanat Prompow.
After being granted parole for meeting the criteria of being old and ill, Thaksin now lives at Ban Chan Song La mansion in Bangkok’s Charan Sanitwong area.
The now-governing Pheu Thai party is a successor of the Thai Rak Thai Party established by Thaksin. That party won the 2001 general elections and experienced a landslide victory in 2005, securing 377 out of 500 seats in the House of Representatives.
As a result of the 2006 military coup that ousted Thaksin’s administration, the Thai Rak Thai Party was disbanded over an allegation of committing electoral fraud, leaving as many as 111 politicians banned from politics for five years.
Amongst them were ministers in the current government, including Deputy PM Phumtham Wechayachai, Deputy PM Somsak Thepsuthin, and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.