Thailand Prime Minister suspended after court orders

Asia-Pacific, News August 25, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Thailand’s Constitutional Court suspended Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha from office on August 24, after accepting a petition against his term in office.

The petition was filed by the parliamentary opposition party, the Pheu Party, last week. The petition seeks ousting of the Prime Minister Prayuth citing that the time he spent as the army chief and head of the military council after the coup of 2014 should also be counted as his term in office.

After accounting for his time as the head of the military council, Prayuth would be considered to have completed his 8-year-long constitutional term in the Prime Minister’s office. It is still not clear when the court would deliver the final verdict on the petition and how long the suspension would last.

Prayuth was the head of the Thai military council during Thailand’s military coup of 2014. Later in 2019, he became civilian prime minister after the general elections held under the 2017 military-drafted constitution of Thailand. According to the new constitution, a prime minister can hold office no more than eight years in a single term.

According to the court’s order, Prayuth’s suspension from the office is only until the time that the panel of five judges decides on the filed petition. If the court decides in the favor of the opposition party, Prayuth would be removed from the office permanently, however, if the court decides in his favor and rejects the petition, he would be restored back into his position.

The court’s suspension orders stated that “The court has considered the petition and related documents and sees that the facts from the petition are cause for questioning as demanded.”

Many political analysts and experts of Thai politics are finding it odd and confusing for the court to suspend the prime minister, as it has never been done before in Thailand’s political history.

*^{Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha. (Image Credit: Reuters/Encyclopaedia Britannica)}*

The court statement also mentions that four out of the five-member panel of judges ruled in favor of Prayuth’s suspension. He has been given 15 days to respond to the court.

The spokesperson of Thailand’s government Anucha Burapachaisri said that in the light of the court’s order, Prayuth has immediately ceased his activities and duties as the Prime Minister of Thailand. Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan took over the office as the interim leader as soon as the court issued the suspension notice. Burapachaisri also stated that Prayuth’s suspension would not affect any of the government’s works.

“Prime Minister Prayuth also urged the people to respect the decision of the court and avoid criticizing the decision that could further create division,” he said.

The country’s next general elections are due in May 2023; however, the country’s opposition parties are trying to overthrow Prayuth’s government for an early and fair election. The Pheu Party’s leader Chonlanan Srikaew stated that the court’s decision has reflected their party’s concerns about the legality and legitimacy of general elections under Prayuth’s government. According to a recent poll, nearly two-third of the Thai population wants Prayuth out of office.