Thread: Move Forward the Opposition

• Move Forward MP sent to prison for six years on lese majeste charges

Move Forward MP for Bangkok, Rukchanok Srinork, was sentenced to six years in prison on Wednesday, after she was found guilty by the Criminal Court of lèse majesté and violations of the Computer Crime Act, for retweeting two messages related to the monarchy and COVID-19 vaccines in 2020.

The defendant was accompanied by former party leader, Pita Limjaroenrat, party leader Chaithawat Tulathon and several other MPs when she showed up at the Ratchadapisek Criminal Court this morning to hear the verdict.

The court had earlier rejected Rukchanok’s request for a postponement of the reading of the verdict today, on the grounds that it coincides with the resumption of the parliamentary session.

The Thai Lawyers for Human Rights group said that the court did not suspend Rukchanok’s prison term and that they will apply for bail on her behalf.

Move Forward MP Rukchanok found guilty of lese majesty, jailed for six years

• Rukchanok granted bail after conviction on lese majeste charges

The Criminal Court has granted bail to Move Forward MP for Bangkok, Rukchanok Srinork, after she was sentenced to six years in prison, without suspension, on a lèse majesté conviction for retweeting a message related to the monarchy and COVID-19 vaccines.

Rukchanok applied for bail, pending an appeal, which the court set at 500,000 baht in cash, which she provided. She also used the position of party leader Chaithawat Tulathon as a guarantee.

As a condition for granting bail, the court said that she must refrain from any activities which would be deemed to offend the monarchy.

The court’s decision has spared the convicted MP from losing her parliamentary status, for now, which she would lose if incarcerated for even a day following conviction.

Rukchanok posted a message on her Facebook page saying that she had been granted bail and was proceeding to the parliament to perform her duties as an MP.

She also said that she will continue to be the mouthpiece of all suspects charged with lèse majesté, adding that they should be granted bail to defend their cases in court, in accordance with the Constitution.

• Opposition stages tactical walkout to prevent the demise of its draft

The House meeting on the first day of the second parliamentary session for 2023 collapsed on Wednesday as opposition MPs used the walkout tactic to block the termination of its draft meeting regulation.

Deputy House Speaker Padipat Suntiphada, who chaired the meeting, adjourned the meeting after the initial results of the voting on the draft regulation of the opposition Move Forward Party showed that the present MPs did not make a quorum of a simple majority of members of the House.

The House was deliberating a new draft meeting regulation for the House of Representatives.

The House voted 223:1 to reject the draft meeting regulation proposed by Move Forward party-list MP Parit Wacharasindhu, but Padipat, a former Move Forward MP, ruled that the House did not have the required quorum, which annulled the voting results. Voting will now be held at a later meeting.

Padipat was elected deputy House speaker while the Move Forward, which emerged as the largest party after the general election, was still trying to form a coalition government.

After Move Forward decided to sit in the opposition, Padipat refused to relinquish the post of deputy speaker, prompting the party to “expel” him so that the Move Forward leader could assume the post of the opposition leader. Padipat joined the Fair Party, a small opposition party, in early October.

The draft meeting regulation is seen as favouring the opposition at the cost of the government.

Among other things, it would empower the opposition to sponsor a bill that was financially related without endorsement of the prime minister as required currently.

The draft would also require the prime minister to answer questions of the opposition leader or five opposition MPs per week.

It would also seek more quota for the opposition in chairing key House panels , including the House committee on corruption prevention, the House committee on budget monitoring and House committee on parliamentary affairs.

The meeting on Wednesday started with the debate on the draft, during which several ruling coalition MPs opposed it.

Before the House was about to vote on the draft, Move Forward party-list MP Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut proposed the suspension of the vote and proposed that the draft be sent first to the House committee for parliamentary affairs for consideration.

But Saran Timsuwan, Pheu Thai MP and a coalition whip, told the meeting that the coalition whips had resolved against sending the draft to the House committee on parliamentary affairs.

A vote was called to end the dispute and the House voted 223 to 151 to not send the draft to the House committee on parliamentary affairs.

Padipat, who chaired the meeting, checked the quorum before the voting on the draft, and found 332 MPs were present.

But when voting took place, only 224 votes were cast – 223 for and one against the draft.

The opposition then asked Padipat to annul the results on grounds that the meeting did not have the quorum.

• Pita confident he will be cleared by court in media share ownership case

Former Move Forward party leader Pita Limjaroenrat said today that he is ready to attend the hearing at the Constitutional Court next Wednesday, to defend himself over the allegation that he held shares in the now defunct iTV media outlet when he registered his candidacy in the May 14 general election.

The advisory chairman of the Move Forward party said he will check the final draft of his written statement today, which he will deliver before the hearing next Wednesday, adding that Pita is confident that he did not do anything wrong and will be cleared of the allegation.

A petition was lodged with the Election Commission by political activist Ruangkrai Leekitwattana, claiming that Pita held 42,000 iTV shares at the time he registered, in violation of the Constitution, which bars a person who owns shares in a media company from running in an election.

Commenting on the Corrections Department’s new regulation, to allow convicts in good standing to be detained outside prison, Pita said that he does not think the regulation was intended specifically to benefit convicted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, because it was initially conceived about three years ago, before anyone knew that Thaksin would return to Thailand after his 15 years of living in exile abroad.

Meanwhile, Move Forward’s advisory chairman declined to comment on whether the Democrat party will be invited to join the coalition government, now the party has a new leadership, led by Chalermchai Srion.

Nevertheless, he insists that Move Forward remains the party with the most seats in the House and that it will perform its opposition role in the parliament for the people, adding that Move Forward aims to be a constructive opposition party, which does not just focus on trying to topple the government.

On speculation that Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin may be replaced by Paetongtarn Shinawatra next year, Pita said that Srettha should be given more time to prove his worth, adding that adjustment of some policy directions would be more appropriate than replacing the prime minister.

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• Move Forward party's analysis of government's first 100 days

The opposition Move Forward party revealed its in-depth analysis today of the performance of the government of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin during its first 100 days in office.

Speaking at a press conference, Pita Limjaroenrat, advisory chairman of the party, said that they did not grade the performance of the government, but merely conduced an analytical study of it.

The study focusses on five areas, the first being areas where the government appears to be quite successful, said Pita, as he cited the safe return to Thailand of 23 Thai hostages held captive by Hamas in Gaza and the tackling of both formal and informal indebtedness.

The second area is where the government remains indecisive and keeps vacillating, such as the digital wallet scheme and salaries for government officials.

On the digital wallet scheme, Pita said that the government appears to lack a firm plan for how the scheme should proceed and keeps changing the plan, causing widespread confusion, particularly among investors.

He said that the government seems to lack a long-term plan on electricity charges and electric train fares, citing the 20-baht fare for the Purple and Red lines as an example of a short-term solution, without addressing the root cause of the expensive fares.

Concerning Thailand’s competitiveness, boosting tourism and inequality in Thai society, the former Move Forward party leader said that the prime minister appears not to have carefully thought out such policies and became upset when officials could not deliver the results as he had expected.

Another criticism is that the government did the opposite of what it had pledged in its manefesto, said Pita, as he cited the make-up of the constitution-drafting council and whether all the members should be elected, as well as the promised military reform.

For the coming year, he said he expects the government to have a clear strategic road map and plans to address pressing issues, such as drought, economic slowdown and government unity.

• Move Forward’s Chaithawat gets appointment for opposition leader’s post

Move Forward Party leader Chaithawat Tulathon has received royal appointment as opposition leader and will be formally appointed in a ceremony on Wednesday.

Chaithawat told the press on Monday that he had learned from the House Secretariat that His Majesty the King had signed a royal command to appoint him as opposition leader.

A ceremony for him to formally acknowledge the royal command will be held at 8.30am on Wednesday, as lawmakers will be busy with House and party meetings on Tuesday.

Chaithawat said his first step as opposition leader will be to call a meeting with core members of all opposition parties one day before the long New Year holidays begin.

• Chaithawat receives royal command, appointed Opposition leader

Move Forward Party leader Chaithawat Tulathon received a royal command appointing him as the Opposition leader at a ceremony held at the Parliament on Wednesday morning.

Chaithawat kneeled to pay respect to the royal homage of His Majesty the King as he received the command.

The declaration stated that since Chaithawat is the leader of the largest opposition party in Parliament, with no opposition members holding Cabinet seats or the posts of House speaker and deputies, His Majesty has invoked Article 106 of the charter to appoint him as the opposition leader.

MPs from all other opposition parties, except for Democrat members, congratulated Chaithawat after the ceremony. In addition to the Move Forward MPs, those Parliamentarians from Thai Sang Thai and Fair parties congratulated him.

Speaking to reporters after the ceremony, Chaithawat said he would hold an informal meeting with representatives from other opposition parties as soon as possible to discuss a protocol for joining forces in Parliament and for debating the fiscal 2024 budget bill.

Chaithawat said a formal discussion will have to wait until after the New Year holidays because the Democrat Party, which is the second-largest opposition party, has yet to convene a meeting of its new executive board.

Chaithawat vowed to perform his opposition leader duties to ensure checks and balances to the executive’s power and to protect the public interest.

He does not view it as necessary for the opposition to always be adversarial in its relationship with the government, and could join hands with the government to enact key legislation.

In turn, Chaithawat said, the opposition parties hope that the ruling coalition would support opposition bills, including the equal marriage bill and the ethnic people’s council bill.

Under his leadership, the opposition would not be bent on holding censure debates without justifiable reasons, he said, adding that a no-confidence debate would be held only when there is obvious need.

Chaithawat expressed hope that all opposition parties would respect one another as they must work together to protect the national interest.

• Charter Court sets Jan 24 for verdict in Pita’s iTV shareholding case

The Constitutional Court would announce its verdict in the iTV shareholding case against former Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat late next month, the court announced on Wednesday.

The Office of the Constitutional Court announced on its website that the court had finished hearing testimonies of three key witnesses in the iTV case on Wednesday and it would read out the verdict on January 24.

The three witnesses summoned by the court to testify on Wednesday were Sawaeng Boonmee, secretary-general of the Office of the Election Commission, Pita, and Kimsirithaweechai, who chaired the iTV shareholders’ meeting and signed the minutes.

The EC had asked the court to terminate Pita's status as a member of Parliament on grounds that he had violated Article 101 and Article 98 of the charter that prohibited MP candidates from holding shares in a media firm.

Pita has been suspended as an MP after the court accepted the case for judicial review.

Pita has argued that iTV was no longer an active media company and he was holding the shares as an executor for his relatives.

The court office said the judges had finished interrogating the three witnesses on Wednesday and they would read the verdict at 2pm on January 24.

In another case against the Move Forward Party, the court scheduled December 25 for key witnesses to testify at 9.30am.

In the second case, a complainant, Thirayut Suwankesorn, asked the court to consider whether Pita and Move Forward had attempted to overthrow the constitutional monarchy system of governance by campaigning to abolish Article 112 during the campaign for the May 14 general election.

Thirayut asked the court whether the election campaigns by Pita and Move Forward violated Article 49 of the charter, which prohibited any action deemed detrimental to constitutional monarchy.

• MP questions DPM Phumtham's defence of Thaksin's treatment

Move Forward MP Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn questioned Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai’s today over his claim that convicted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is not and has not been receiving special privileges and his request that critics do not to politicise the issue.

In his “X” post, the outspoken MP said that he has never politicised the controversy surrounding Thaksin’s medical treatment at the Police General Hospital, but wants Phumtham to clearly explain the regulation of the Corrections Department, which allows certain prisoners to be treated outside, and Thaksin’s illness which requires him to be treated outside the Corrections Department’s facilities.

Citing the Corrections Department’s regulations, he said that a convict is not allowed to be treated in a “special room”, although they may be allowed to receive treatment outside the prison.

“If the 14th floor of the Police General Hospital is not a special ward, he should say so,” said Wiroj, as he urged Phumtham not to pass the buck on to the doctors at the hospital.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Somsak Thepsuthin warned members of the House Police Affairs Committee that they may face charges if they go to the 14th floor of the Police General Hospital, in an attempt to find out if Thaksin is actually still there, without prior permission from the hospital.

He also said that only Thaksin has the right to disclose the nature of his illnesses, which is regarded as so confidential information which even the doctors are not allowed to disclose.

Somsak explained that the Corrections Department’s regulation to allow convicts to be treated outside prison is normally reviewed every five years, to improve the penal system, and is not specifically meant to benefit Thaksin, as claimed by critics.

According to Thai PBS’s findings, Room 1401 on the 14th floor of Police General Hospital, where Thaksin is reported to be being treated, is guarded by a corrections official at the door, with two police officers on guard in the left wing of the hospital building.

The 14th floor, which was previously the ward for high-ranking special patients, has been renamed “special patient ward”.

Thaksin has been in the hospital for 120 days and, according to the regulations, the director-general of the Corrections Department must submit a report on Thaksin’s treatment and condition to the justice minister, for consideration about what to do next.

• Charter Court hears case on Move Forward plan to amend lese majeste law

Thailand’s Constitutional Court held a hearing this morning to consider a petition filed against the Move Forward party and its former leader, Pita Limjaroenrat, claiming that their election pledge to amend Section 112 of the Criminal code, or the lèse majesté law, is tantamount to an attempt to overthrow the country’s constitutional monarchy.

The petitioner, Thirayuth Suwankaesoorn, told the media that the court did not summon him, Pita or the incumbent Move Forward party leader Chaithawat Tulathon to testify.

He said he has learned that the court called two defence witnesses, listed by the Move Forward party, adding that he is confident that his allegation against the party is valid.

Thirayuth disclosed that, in the past two weeks, he has been allowed to review information submitted to the court by relevant agencies concerning the case and found that itsupports his case against the Move Forward party.

He maintains that his objective is to stop the Move Forward party from trying to amend the lèse majesté law, which may destabilise the Monarchy, adding that, if the court rules that his petition is justified and orders the party to stop its attemptsto amend the law, it will be the responsibility of the Election Commission to dissolve the party.

Pita, meanwhile, told media at the court that he is ready to explain that his party’s bid to amend the controversial law is not an attempt to overthrow the constitutional monarchy as charged and is in line with the Constitution. He also said that he has faith that the party will receive justice from the court.

He also said that he believes the party will not be dissolved, even if the court rules against its policy.

The hearing today is expected to conclude at about noon, after which the court will set the date for the court to consider their ruling, expected at the end of January or early February.

The Constitutional Court is also due to issue its ruling in Pita’s iTV media share ownership case on January 24th. Pita is accused of owning 42,000 iTV shares at the time he registeredhis candidacy for the May 14th election. If he is found guilty, he could face a jail term up to 10 years and/or a fine of between 20,000 and 200,000 baht and the election of all the Move Forward MPs could be invalidated.

• Move Forward slams govt for allotting opposition just 7 days to study budget bill

Move Forward Party leader Chaithawat Tulathon criticised the government for giving the opposition just seven days to study the 2024 budget bill.

The debate of the budget bill has been scheduled for three days from January 3 to 5.

Chaithawat argued that the debate should be postponed by at least a week, as the seven days for opposition MPs to study the bill before the debate is insufficient.

He said a minimum of two weeks should be allotted for opposition members to thoroughly examine the bill before engaging in the debate.

Highlighting historical precedents, Chaithawat recalled that during the previous government tenure, when Pheu Thai was in the opposition, the two-week timeframe provided by the Prayut Chan-o-cha government was considered too short.

“The seven-day period is the shortest in decades and may be the briefest notice in the history of Thai politics,” Chaithawat remarked, adding that the period includes the New Year holidays.

Despite the challenges, Chaithawat said “we’ll do our best”, adding that the government should allocate time for coalition MPs to also debate because the 2024 budget bill was not exclusively prepared by the Pheu Thai-led government.

Instead, he claimed, the coalition had merely reallocated the budget that was initially prepared during the Prayut government.

Typically, budget bills are enacted before the start of the fiscal year on October 1. However, the 2024 budget bill had to be delayed to allow the new government to take office after the May 14 election.

• Move Forward works hard on preparing arguments for Budget Bill debate next week

Opposition leader Move Forward Party warned the government of tough scrutiny at next week’s parliamentary debate on the 2024 Budget Bill.

The party’s deputy leader Sirikanya Tansakun said on Saturday that the intensity of scrutiny by the party’s MPs will be the same as the one faced by General Prayut Chan-o-cha’s government.

“This one will also be intense because it is our [Move Forward MPs] duty to scrutinise the government. An elected government faces high expectations,” she said.

The MP added that the Budget Bill would give a clear picture of what the government will be doing over the next year. She said, so far, the Pheu Thai-led administration has not provided a clear picture of its plans in the policy statement presented to Parliament.

“We hope this government will have a clear budget plan and workable indicators. We place much hope in this upcoming event and will not be lenient just because this is an elected government. We will do complete scrutiny,” Sirikanya said.

The Budget Bill debate has been scheduled for January 3-5, and Move Forward is getting ready for the big day despite the New Year holidays, Sirikanya said.

She added that a support team was providing necessary information and script to new MPs who will take part in next week’s debate.

Move Forward MPs who have been chosen to take the floor are scheduled to rehearse their arguments on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, with a final rehearsal on January 2.

Sirikanya said the opposition has been allocated 19 hours for the debate and that each of the Move Forward MPs speaking at the debate will be given an average of 30 minutes.

• Bickering with political rivals waste of time, says Move Forward leader

Move Forward’s biggest challenge is not its political competitors, but more its ability to deliver on campaign promises and supporters’ expectations, the opposition party’s leader said.

Chaithawat Tulathon also said on Saturday that his predecessor, Pita Limjaroenrat, had a good chance of returning to the party’s helm if the Constitutional Court ruled in his favour.

Pita stepped down as Move Forward leader to pave the way for Chaithawat to take over after he was suspended as MP over accusations of running for office while holding shares in a now-defunct media company.

The Constitutional Court is scheduled to issue a verdict on this case on January 24.

Chaithawat, who is serving as opposition leader, said on Saturday that Move Forward MPs and party members agreed that the party had to compete against itself, not against its political rivals.

He added that the party’s future depends very much on how well it can work on keeping its promises and meet the expectations of its supporters. If Move Forward succeeds in its “fight against itself”, the party will attain political achievements and win more public support, he said.

“I told my party colleagues to stop wasting time bickering with rival political parties. Instead, we should just work hard and prove ourselves. We must show that Move Forward MPs and staff are well-prepared and capable of running the country. That is our actual goal,” he said.

Chaithawat was elected at a Move Forward general meeting in September as Pita’s successor after he stepped down.

Upon taking over, Chaithawat promised that he would keep the seat warm for Pita if he was cleared by the Constitutional Court and could return.

Chaithawat said on Saturday that he was confident Pita would get overwhelming support from party members to return as Move Forward leader.

• Opposition leader sees Srettha losing PM’s seat to Paetongtarn next year

Move Forward Party leader Chaithawat Tulathon said the prime minister’s post might change hands by mid-2024 because Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin is facing many complaints.

Chaithawat, the opposition leader, said the incumbent Senate will complete its five-year term in the middle of next year, and Srettha may be replaced by Pheu Thai leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

He backed his prediction by the fact that Srettha is facing several complaints from independent organisations. Plus, he said, the opposition may also file more complaints against him.

Among the complaints is an accusation that Srettha violated the new Police Commission Act regarding the appointment of the latest national police chief. He was also accused of helping a group of landowners avoid paying land tax when selling land to his real estate company, Sansiri.

Chaithawat added that he hopes Srettha will be more proactive in the new year, citing the case of unskilled workers’ wage hike as an example of the PM’s “hands-free” tactics.

He said the PM had failed to inform the tripartite committee of the government’s policy on wage increases and waited until the committee decided to adjust the wages very slightly before crying foul.

Meanwhile, Democrat party-list MP Jurin Laksanawisit said he has been assigned by his party to lead Democrat MPs in the debate against the budget bill on January 3.

He said he would touch the overall picture of the bill without digging into deep details because of time constraints.

• Opposition sees "no future" for Thailand in government's budget

Leading opposition MPs have expressed their disappointment in the government’s FY2024 budget, claiming that the financial allocations do not reflect the government’s policies and the bulk of the budget is allocated to the fixed expenditures of the various ministries, with little left over for the public benefit.

Thai Sang Thai party leader Sudarat Keyuraphan said in her Facebook post today that she feels hopeless for the country’s future, as well as regret over the waste of taxpayers’ money and the way the government is allocating its 3.48 trillion baht budget for the 2024 fiscal year.

Despite the fact that there are is little to no difference between the government’s budget and that of the previous Prayut administration, she said that this government’s budget for defence and the Central Fund, which is directly within the discretion of the prime minister, has increased.

There is an investment budget of 717 billion baht, or 20.6% of the entire expenditure budget, but there is no money to address poverty and equality issues, as promised by the Pheu Thai party during the election campaign, said Khunying Sudarat.

She also said that the budgetary allocation fails to address other key areas, such as the improvement of opportunities for farmers to generate more income, human resource development, improvement of Thailand’s competitiveness and development of new technologies, among others.

Move Forward party leader Chaithawat Tulathon said today that he has noticed the discrepancy between the government’s budget and its policies, as presented by Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin in August.

He noted that the government’s revenue assessment is inflated and does not reflect reality, in the same manner as the previous administration, resulting in its successor bearing the burden of raising more revenue to reduce the deficit.

He admitted that he does not see any future for Thailand in the government’s budget.

• Government accused by Move Forward of fiddling calculation of GDP

Move Forward party-list MP Sirikanya Tansakul has questioned the government’s budgeting for the 2024 fiscal year, saying that it does not reflect the government’s claim that Thailand is facing several crises.

She also accused the government of cheating in the calculation of GDP, claiming that it will be able to achieve 5% growth in the first year of its term in office by including the inflation rate in the calculation, adding that no country has ever tried this method of calculation before.

She also noted that no money is allocated in the budget bill for several government projects which require funding, citing as one example the controversial “digital wallet” scheme, which requires about 500 billion baht in funding, to be secured through public borrowing by virtue of a loan bill.

During the debate on the government’s budget bill for 2024, Sirikanya singled out several shortcomings, saying that such mistakes are inexcusable, but indicative of the government’s lack of professionalism.

“Is this the government which is reputed to be good at economic management?” she asked.

The Move Forward party-list MP said that, normally, when there is a crisis in any given year, the government would prepare a deficit budget, so it could secure loans to meet the shortfall.

For this year, she said the government plans to secure loans, amounting to 3.6% of GDP, to compensate for the budgetary deficit. She added, though, that she is baffled by the government’s mid-term fiscal plan, estimating the budget deficit for the next three years at 3.4% annually, making her wonder whether Thailand will be in the same crisis for the next three years.

Another questionable budget allocation she noted is the 7.7 billion baht earmarked for road construction, ostensibly to promote tourism. While admitting that road construction is necessary, she said that such construction alone will not encourage tourists to spend more.

If the country is actually in a crisis, as claimed by the government, she said that, normally, the defence budget would have to be sacrificed, citing the year when Thailand was struck by the “Tom Yum Gung” financial crisis, when the defence budget was slashed by about 21%, “but, this year, defence budget is increased by two percent,” she noted.

She said that she does not want to blame the government for not preparing a proper budget which corresponds with the economic situation, noting that the real problem lies with the structural setup, which needs to be rectified.

Regarding the projects which are not allocated sufficient budget for their implementation, Sirikanya said that, ultimately, the government will have to rely on the Central Fund to fund the projects.

Meanwhile, Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat said he was disappointed by Sirikanya’s accusation that the government had cheated in the calculation of GDP.

He insisted that inflation and the foreign exchange rate are included in the calculation of GDP.

Speaking out

• Move Forward MP weeps during debate in parliament

Move Forward MP Sirilapas Kongtrakarn broke into tears during a debate over the budget bill in parliament today, as she complained that the Public Health Ministry has ignored psychiatric patients, such as those suffering from depression, by allocating only a small budget to address this health problem.

Sirilapas came to public attention in September last year when a Bhumjaithai MP accused her of taking food home from the canteen, which was meant for parliamentary staff. She explained, however, that she did not steal the food, claiming that it was leftovers which would have been wasted otherwise.

Taking the floor to debate the Public Health Ministry’s budget, the first-time Bangkok MP said she feels that the government has attached more importance to patients suffering drug addiction than other psychiatric disorders, claiming that there are about 200,000 patients suffering drug related psychoses, compared to about a million with other psychiatric disorders, especially those who are suffering from depression, estimated to number about 360,000.

Citing studies on suicides by the Department of Mental Health, she said that nine out of ten people who commit suicide suffer from at least one psychiatric disorder, most commonly depression or alcoholism.

Despite the gravity of the problem, the MP said that the Department of Mental Health was allocated only 1.8% of the Public Health Ministry’s budget, adding that subsidies for programs to take care of youth suffering from psychiatric problems amount to only about a million baht. Also, there are no incentives for nurses working in psychiatric wards, prompting many of them to quit or to transfer.

The MP said that she used to suffer from depression and cut her wrists in a suicide attempt. She had spent several years in rehabilitation, before she finally recovered and was able to pursue a normal life and speak up for those who are suffering from depression. Then she began to cry.

• Sudarat apologises for votes by her party MPs backing budget bill

The leader of the opposition Thai Sang Thai Party, Sudarat Keyuraphan, on Saturday offered a public apology after three MPs from her party voted on Friday in support of the government’s budget bill.

She said that the action by those MPs violated the party’s regulation, adding that its ethics committee would investigate the matter shortly.

The veteran politician said she expected the ethics committee’s findings to be reported to the party’s executive board as soon as possible for further action.

“The executive board and I would like to offer our humble apology to the public and members of the Thai Sang Thai Party regarding the voting on the budget bill in which three party MPs voted against the resolution by the party and the opposition,” Sudarat said in her official Facebook account.

The party leader said that although she was abroad, she had closely followed the debate in the House of Representatives on the government’s budget bill for fiscal 2024.

“I am extremely unhappy that the three MPs failed to follow the party’s resolution,” she said in her Facebook post.

The lower House on Friday night voted 311-177, with four abstentions, to pass the budget bill. A 72-member committee was set up to vet the budget bill for two more House readings.

Thai Sang Thai has six MPs – five from constituencies and one from the party-list system.

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• Opposition Thai Sang Thai sec-gen quits over 3 party MPs pro-govt votes

Takorn Tantasith, secretary-general of the opposition Thai Sang Thai Party, stepped down to take responsibility for the three wayward party MPs who voted in support of the government’s budget bill.

Party director Narong Rungtanawong said Takorn will retain his MP seat and party membership.

The secretary-general submitted his resignation to Thai Sang Thai leader Sudarat Keyuraphan shortly after noon on Saturday. His letter mentioned the incident in which three party MPs went against the opposition line and voted for the budget bill on Friday, Narong said.

The move came a few hours after Sudarat offered a public apology for what happened. In a Facebook post on Saturday morning, she said that voting against the opposition stance violated the party’s regulations. She added that its ethics committee will investigate the matter shortly.

After three days of debate, the House of Representatives on Friday night voted 311-177, with four abstentions, to pass the budget bill.

Thai Sang Thai has six MPs – five from constituencies and one from the party-list system.

In his resignation, Takorn said that as party secretary-general, he had called a meeting with the MPs and instructed them to vote in line with the opposition’s resolution, Narong said.

“However, it turned out that three Thai Sang Thai MPs voted in support of the budget bill, which was against the opposition parties’ resolution. Therefore, I would like to take responsibility by resigning as Thai Sang Thai secretary-general from this moment onwards,” Takorn’s resignation stated.

Takorn is the only Thai Sang Thai party-list MP, taking up the seat after Sudarat resigned in July, less than two months after the May 14 general election. He was the first National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) secretary-general, serving for two terms between 2012 and 2020.

• Move Forward confident that Pita will be cleared in iTV shareholding case

The opposition Move Forward party believes that its former leader, Pita Limjaroenrat, will be cleared of a charge that he held a stake in the iTV media company when he applied for candidacy in the May 14th general election last year and will not lose his parliamentary status.

The Constitutional Court is scheduled to deliver its ruling this Wednesday.

The Move Forward party released a 7-minute video yesterday, explaining why the party believes that Pita, currently chief advisor to the incumbent leader of the party, will be cleared by the charter court and will resume his duties in the party as a party-list MP.

The reasons cited by the Move Forward party to support its belief are:

-iTV no longer has a license to operate a television station,after the government cancelled its contract in 2007.

-iTV has never registered to produce newspapers or other printed materials. It does not hold a license to produce movies, video content or advertisements.

-The Supreme Administrative Court has ruled that there is no evidence to show that iTV has a license to operate a TV station.

-Pita held shares in iTV as executor of his father’s will and the shares amounted to just 0.00348 percent of all the shares in the company and, hence, there is no way that Pita had a controlling interest in the company.

–iTV generates no income from the media business.

The party said that Pita also has confidence in his evidence.

Pita was ordered, by the Constitutional Court, to suspend performance his duties as an MP and he informed the House of his compliance with the order on July 19th.

• Judgement day for Pita: A closer look at case that could change Thai politics

The Constitutional Court is set to rule on Wednesday (January 24) whether Pita Limjaroenrat, the initial front-runner to become Thailand’s 30th prime minister, violated the charter by contesting last year’s election while holding shares in a media company.

The former leader of the reformist Move Forward Party is accused of holding 42,000 shares in iTV Plc when he registered to contest the May 2023 election. A guilty verdict would result in Pita being disqualified from office and losing his seat in Parliament.

It could also prompt the Election Commission (EC), which brought the case, to sue Pita for violating the election law, which states that anyone contesting an election while knowingly unqualified to do so faces one to 10 years in prison, a fine of 20,000-200,000 baht, and 20 years with no electoral rights.

An EC subcommittee earlier suggested that criminal action against Pita be dropped due to a lack of incriminating evidence, but the election commissioners have reportedly postponed their decision to see whether any such evidence is mentioned in Wednesday’s court verdict.

If the court finds that iTV is not a media business, Pita will retain his MP seat. In that case, he is expected to return as leader of Move Forward and therefore of the parliamentary opposition.

Both seats are currently held by Chaithawat Tulathon, who replaced Pita last September after being elected at a general meeting of the party. Pita had stepped down amid uncertainty over his MP status to pave the way for a new Move Forward chief to become the opposition leader.

Chaithawat has vowed to step down for Pita to return as leader if he is cleared by the court.

Line of defense

Pita will also retain his MP seat if the court decides that he did not own the iTV shares in question, even if the court finds that the company is a media business.

Pita’s line of defense is that iTV has not operated as a media firm since 2007 and that he was only holding the shares as executor of his father Pongsak’s estate following his death in 2006.

The charismatic politician reiterated his argument before reporters after the final court hearing last month, pointing out that iTV’s revenue now comes from interest on its investments, not media operations.

“I am confident that iTV is not a media stock,” he said.

Little more in the article

• Police, court officials step up security around charter court ahead of iTV ruling

Security around the Constitutional Court in the Government House complex was stepped up on Tuesday, one day ahead of the court verdict on the iTV shareholding case.

The court is scheduled to issue a verdict on former Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat’s stake in the now-defunct media firm iTV at 2pm on Wednesday.

The Metropolitan Police Bureau dispatched police officers to secure the court’s compound on Chaeng Wattana Road, though other details of security measures have been kept confidential.

The Metropolitan Police Division 2 has cooperated with the court’s security to clearly demarcate the court’s boundary for maintaining security. Metal barricades have been put up to mark the court’s area within Building A. More metal barricades will be put up in front of and behind the court building by 5pm on Tuesday.

The Constitutional Court’s office has also instructed reporters to hand in their details before 3pm to get permission to attend the verdict reading. They will be allowed to monitor the delivery of the verdict through CCTVs in the lobby and the hall on the second floor only.


Heightened security around Constitutional Court on Pita's judgement day

• Court clears Pita of iTV shares charges

The Constitutional Court has cleared the former leader of the Move Forward party, Pita Limjaroenrat, of the charge that he contested in last year’s election while holding shares in a media company.

The Court ruled that iTV is no longer a media business; therefore, Pita’s holding of shares in iTV did not violate the Constitution and the electoral law.

This means that Pita will retain his MP seat and the ruling paves the way for him to make a political comeback after he was suspended from performing his legislative duties since last July.

Speaking shortly before the ruling, Pita said if he was cleared from the charge he would consult with House Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha as to when he should resume his MP’s duties.

The political drama against Pita, who was the prime ministerial candidate of Move Forward Party, started in May last year when the Election Commission accused him of holding 42,000 shares in iTV Plc, which is registered as media business, when he filed his candidacy in the election.

Article 98 of the Constitution states that owners or share-holders of newspapers or other media businesses are prohibited from being candidates in House elections

The EC put forward the case to the Constitutional Court, which later agreed to consider the case and ordered a temporary suspension of Pita from parliament.

In his defence, Pita insisted that iTV was no longer active as a media business and that the shares he was holding were inherited from his father and that he was only acting as their manager.

He also argued that the amount of his iTV shares was negligible and did not give him control over its operation.

• Chaithawat says ready to hand over Move Forward reins to Pita

Move Forward Party leader Chaithawat Tulathon said on Wednesday that he was ready to hand over the party's leadership to Pita Limjaroenrat, which would make him the opposition leader as well.

Chaithawat said Move Forward would hold a party caucus late April and he would be willing to step down for a new party leader and executive board to be elected.

Chaithawat was speaking to reporters after the Constitutional Court judges voted 8:1 to reinstate Pita as an MP and dismissed the Election Commission’s request to disqualify him on charges he held shares in a media firm. The court ruled that iTV was not a media firm when Pita applied to run in the general election last year.

Asked whether he would be willing to hand over the post of opposition leader to Pita, Chaithawat replied: “No problem. I’m not clinging to any post. I can be anywhere.”

Chaithawat said he believed that the court’s ruling would take immediate effect but he would have to check with the House speaker whether the speaker needed to be formally informed by a written order from the court before Pita could enter the House to work.

He said Move Forward had made preparations for Pita to return to work inside Parliament.

Chaithawat said Pita was scheduled to announce the annual plan of Move Forward on Thursday or Friday. If he was allowed to return to work in Parliament, the announcement would be made in the Parliament compound, Chaithawat added.

On the second case against Pita and the Move Forward, Chaithawat said he and other party members were not worried at all.

The Constitutional Court is scheduled to read its verdict in the second case on January 31. Pita and the Move Forward have been accused of seeking to topple the Constitutional Monarchy system through their campaigns for amendments to Article 112 of the Criminal Code, which is known as the lese majeste law.

Pita to stage political comeback

Originally Posted by S Landreth

The Constitutional Court has cleared the former leader of the Move Forward party, Pita Limjaroenrat, of the charge that he contested in last year’s election while holding shares in a media company.

The Court ruled that iTV is no longer a media business; therefore, Pita’s holding of shares in iTV did not violate the Constitution and the electoral law.

they got the right answer but in any sane "democracy" the case would have been thrown out. Now he just needs to weather the next 32 trumped up charges that'll get brought against him.

Originally Posted by malmomike77

Now he just needs to weather the next 32 trumped up charges that'll get brought against him.

He won't. The party will be disolved and it will be back to square 1 with new party name for next election. Real political change will only happen when folks are willing to die for change.