Thailand’s Constitutional Court on Wednesday dismissed Prime Minister Surendra Thavisin for appointing a jailed former lawyer to his cabinet, raising fears of further political turmoil and a reshuffle of the ruling coalition.
Property tycoon Suretta became the fourth Thai prime minister in 16 years to be ousted by the same court after it ruled he had violated the constitution by appointing ministers who did not meet ethical standards.
The removal of Sletta after less than a year in power means parliament must convene to choose a new prime minister, potentially casting further uncertainty in a country troubled over two decades in which multiple governments and parties have been toppled by coups and court rulings.
The court last week dissolved the hugely popular anti-establishment opposition Forward Party, ruling that its campaign to amend the royal insult law risked undermining the constitutional monarchy. The party was re-formed on Friday.
Mr. Suretha’s Pheu Thai party and its predecessors have borne the brunt of Thailand’s turmoil, which has seen two coups topple governments due to a long-running bitter feud between the party’s founders, the billionaire Shinawatra family, and rival conservative and royalist military juntas.
The decision could undermine the fragile truce between political heavyweight Thaksin Shinawatra and his opponents in Thailand’s conservative elite and military veterans that has allowed him to return from 15 years in exile in 2023 and have his ally, Suretta, become prime minister immediately.
Sretha had argued that the appointment of former Shinawatra lawyer Pichit Chumbang, who was briefly jailed for contempt of court in 2008 for plotting to bribe court officials, was legitimate. The bribery allegations were never proven, and Pichit resigned in May.
Deputy Prime Minister Puemtam Vechayachai is expected to become caretaker prime minister.
Restoration of the Shinawatra family?
Some political experts say after a period of wheeling and dealing and uncertainty about who will take power, the Pheu Thai Party is still likely to have influence to lead the next government.
“The coalition remains united,” said Orarn Timbanthieow, deputy dean of Burapha University’s school of political science and law. “There may be some impact on trust, but it will be short-term.”
The next prime minister must be nominated by each political party as their candidate before the 2023 general election, and the Pheu Thai Party’s candidates include Thaksin’s 37-year-old daughter and party leader, Pathontar Shinawatra.
If elected, she would become Thailand’s third prime minister of Shinawatra descent, following Thaksin and her aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra.
Other candidates include Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Energy Minister Piraphan Sarirathavibaga and Prawit Wongsuwan, a powerful former army commander implicated in the two previous coups.
The court’s decision comes at a difficult time for an economy that Finance Minister Juan Manuel Compagnie has struggled to revive, with exports and consumer spending sluggish, household debt soaring and more than a million small businesses unable to access loans.
The government forecasts growth of just 2.7 percent in 2024, lagging behind other countries in the region, while Thailand has been Asia’s worst-performing market this year, with its main stock index down about 17 percent since the start of the year.
