By 
15-08-2024
Nuno Daun
Southeast Asia & Pacific Team
Global Human Rights Defence
Yesterday, the Constitutional Court of Thailand ordered the removal of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin from office, following his minister appointment of Pichit Chuenban, a convicted criminal.
Pichit Chuenban was convicted and sentenced to six months in jail back in 2008 for attempting to bribe court officials with 2 million baht ($55.218) in a paper grocery bag.
Supreme Court Justice, Punya Udchachon announced that the court ruled with a 5-4 vote to remove the current Prime Minister from office. Srettha becomes the fourth Thai Prime Minister to be removed from office by the Court in the last 16 years. Prior to being elected, he campaigned under the motto of human rights and with the intent of tackling the rising cost of living in the country.
The scandal broke back in May when a petition submitted by 40 senators reached the Court, calling for the removal of Srettha from office. The Court accepted the petition but declared that the Srettha could continue serving as Prime Minister pending the investigation. Soon after the news broke, Pichit resigned from his position as minister in an attempt to protect Srettha.
Aftermath
Srettha did not attend the ruling, but told reporters that he did not anticipate this verdict but that he would respect it, although he expressed his disappointment in being labelled dishonest. He further stated “I reiterate that for the almost one year I have been in this role, I have tried with good intentions to lead the country with honesty.” His removal from office after less than a year means that the parliament is now tasked with appointing a new Prime Minister.
Srettha’s party, the Pheu Thai party, is now scrambling to find a replacement candidate. However, as per Thailand’s parliamentary system, the party can only choose from those who were nominated as prime ministerial candidates in the last election of 2023. One of the most prominent candidates is Paetongtarn Shinawatra, daughter of the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
The Parliament is set to discuss the appointment of a new Prime Minister in the coming weeks.
Sources and further readings:
Alastair Mccready, ‘‘Big shock’: Thailand faces political upheaval as PM removed from office’ Al Jazeera (15 August 2024) https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/8/15/big-shock-thailand-faces-political-upheaval-as-pm-removed-from-office accessed 15 August 2024.
Al Jazeera Staff, ‘Who is Srettha Thavisin, the man who could lead Thailand?’ Al Jazeera (22 August 2023) https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/8/22/who-is-srettha-thavisin-the-man-who-could-lead-thailand accessed 15 August 2024.
Al Jazeera, ‘Thai court orders dismissal of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’ (14 August 2024) https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/8/14/thai-court-orders-dismissal-of-prime-minister-srettha-thavisin accessed 15 August 2024.
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