Banharn elected Thai party president
Banharn elected Thai party president
BANGKOK (Reuter): Thai members of parliament elected a trusted stalwart of the Chart Thai party as their president yesterday with the power to nominate party leader Banharn Silpa-archa as the country's 21st prime minister.
Boon-ua Prasertsuwan was elected president of the House of Representatives on a vote of 231 to 156, beating rival Bhichai Rattakul, nominated by the outgoing Democrat Party in the parliament's first sitting since the July 2 election.
There were three abstentions.
Banharn's Chart Thai (Thai Nation) emerged victorious in the election by winning 92 seats in the 391-seat House of Representatives and quickly formed a coalition with six other parties to control 233 seats.
Chart Thai ousted the incumbent coalition government of Democrat Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai. His party won 86 seats. The appointment of Boon-ua is seen by analysts as a guarantee that Banharn's name will be proposed to Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej for royal approval to become prime minister.
There were rumors that Boon-ua could propose Banharn's name for premiership to the king late yesterday, but confirmation was not possible.
Earlier yesterday, the king opened the house in a royal ceremony after which the first sitting was convened.
The unusually early first sitting of the parliament, which is normally held some days after the royal opening, underlined how anxious Banharn and his party are to get the top post, analysts said.
"Cabinet formation can be done later. The Chart Thai want Banharn and the party to first get the post of prime minister. After that a list of ministers can be agreed, most likely by around this weekend," one political analyst said.
The process could take a little longer than normal because of two Buddhist holidays this week, the analyst said.
Chart Thai has already agreed with its coalition partners on the division of posts in a new cabinet but Chart Thai and its coalition partners are facing internal strife over whether a senior deputy Chart Thai leader should get a ministerial post.
The controversial leader is Vatana Asvahame, a veteran and powerful politician who the United States says it suspects of having links to drug trafficking and who has been refused a visa to travel to America.
Although Vatana has denied the allegation some coalition members remain opposed to his appointment to the cabinet because they fear it may affect the image of a new government.
Washington last week said bilateral ties could be complicated if a new Thai government includes those suspected of links to drug trafficking.
"After he gets the prime minister's job, Banharn can take his time to sort out this controversy. He has moved faster than expected and I expect him to solve this problem in a few days rather than in few weeks," a diplomat said.
The outgoing Democrats, who say they are prepared to play the role of a responsible opposition, were waiting in the wings to watch if Banharn's coalition runs into any trouble. They are likely to try to woo away his allies and form an alternative coalition if Banharn runs into serious trouble.