Greater clarity was reached when the 40 MPs from the Palang Prahcharat Party (PPRP) said they would support the prime minister candidate put forward by the Pheu Thai Party.  Accordingly, given the most recent count of Pheu Thai and the coalition votes, they would still need 97 of the senators to join and elect a Pheu Thai prime minister.  Obviously, MFP has the votes to make that happen, but the smiling faces shown below with the new coalition members indicate the arrangement has been settled and none of the youngsters in MFP will be allowed to join.  MFP spokespersons made it clear that the royalty and military reforms were part of their platform upon which they were elected, and they would not abandon those principles. 

The Palang Prahcharat Party was established in 2019 as a vehicle for General Prayut Chan-o-cha, the 2014 military coup leader, and General Prawit Wongsuwan to remain in power.  These two generals represent stereotypes for the party platform of MFP to bring the military control over the country to a halt and place it in the hands of the parliament and Thai government.  In an earlier article, we noted that General Prayut reluctantly stepped down from his position as prime minister.  

Since then, General Prawit, shown below, became acting prime minister.  You would expect that a party led by a general would be able to get the needed support from the senators who were appointed by the two generals named herein.  Moreover, there may be an opportunity to remain as prime minister. There are also whispers going around that the fugitive former Prime Minister Thaksin may receive a pardon and enter Thailand without the threat of going to prison which may be back to the past.  Why should Thai politics be any different from the backroom bargaining that goes on most everywhere? 

In Thailand one might forget the Bob Dylan song of The Times They Are A-Changin’ as that event may remain for some time in the future.  On the other hand, the first bit of evidence is breaking through that some democratic steps may be ahead.  The Bangkok Post published an article that the Pheu Thai Party with support from the Chartthaipattana Party leaders, shown below, would plan to re-write the Thai Charter or constitution and present it to the voters for a referendum.  The stipulation from both parties is that the first two current chapters addressing the definition of the royalty and democracy of Thailand as well as royal prerogatives were sacrosanct.  Accordingly, there may be some recognition of the MFP landslide victory as a wise move to reconsider the power of the military.  We can all thank The Bangkok Post for their excellent coverage of complicated Thai politics which may not be that different from most anywhere else.