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The winner of Thailand’s general election has been suspended from parliament just hours before an expected vote on whether he becomes prime minister.
In a dramatically timed decision, Thailand’s constitutional court accepted a case relating to shares Pita Limjaroenrat allegedly owns in a television broadcaster, and suspended him for 15 days pending a ruling.
It marks the latest escalation in an increasingly tense stand-off between the clear winners of May’s general election — Pita and his Move Forward party — and a conservative establishment of generals, oligarchs and royal officials determined to keep him out of power.
Pita urged his fellow members to “take care of the people”, and then, making a show of leaving his parliamentary ID behind, walked out of the assembly chamber to applause from his party.
Today’s vote is a crucial moment for the 42-year-old former businessman after unelected senators blocked his first bid for the premiership last week. If he loses again today, the assembly may move to consider rival candidates, while his supporters have threatened to take to the streets in protest.
Move Forward, regarded as a social democratic or centre-left force in Thai politics, won 151 out of 500 seats in May’s election. Its ally, the Pheu Thai party, took another 141 seats.
However, votes to become prime minister are held jointly with 250 senators appointed by the former military junta, so candidates need 376 votes to win. Last week, almost all of the senators either voted against Pita or abstained, leaving him well short of the victory line.
The court case marks a further tactic to block Move Forward. It means Pita will not be able to vote for his own candidacy, even if parliament allows a second vote on his nomination to go ahead.
“It’s clear under the current system that winning people’s trust is not enough to run the country,” said Pita. “You have to ask the Senate first. And maybe even that is not enough to get my name nominated a second time.”
In a statement, the constitutional court said the facts before it “show reasonable suspicion” that Pita owned shares in a media business and was therefore disqualified from sitting in parliament.
The case relates to allegations that Pita owns 42,000 shares in iTV, a dormant TV station.
His defenders point out that his shareholding amounts to 0.000035 per cent of the company, that iTV has not broadcast since 2007 and that the shareholding was never raised previously when Pita was a member of parliament.
Pita has said he inherited the shares, that they have no economic value and he has now transferred them to a relative.
If Pita is disqualified or voted down, one option for the coalition parties is to propose a prime minister from Pheu Thai, but analysts said the establishment may block any government that includes Move Forward from taking office.
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