Thailand’s new cabinet has been selected, PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Monday. It will be submitted for royal endorsement within this week.
Senior officials in her caretaker government previously said the new government should be in place by mid-September.
The new cabinet is expected to retain the current finance and foreign ministers. However, it will likely see 11 new ministers and deputy ministers.
Sorawong Thienthong said the new government should account for slightly more parliamentary seats than its predecessor. He declined to comment on the list of new cabinet members. Thienthong is the Secretary General of Paetongtarn’s ruling Pheu Thai Party,
A month ago, Srettha Thavisin was removed from office as premier by a court order. The 62-year-old property tycoon-turned-politician’s dismissal plunged Thailand into political turmoil.
Soon after, the populist Pheu Thai quickly rallied support behind its inexperienced leader, Paetongtarn. This led to the parliament selecting her as prime minister days later.
She is Thailand’s youngest premier and the second woman and fourth member of her billionaire family to hold the post.
THAI POLITICAL TURMOIL
Paetongtarn won easily with 319 votes, or nearly two-thirds of the house. She was not present in parliament and watched the vote from her Pheu Thai Party’s headquarters.
Paetongtarn is the daughter of the influential and divisive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. Shinawatre is still seen as a major force behind the party.
The new government dropped the military-aligned Palang Pracharat party and has added its oldest foe, the Democrat Party, to the coalition.
The court that dismissed Srettha over a cabinet appointment, also dissolved the anti-establishment Move Forward Party. The Move Forward Party was the 2023 election winner.
The Court dissolved the party because of its campaign to amend a royal insult law that risked undermining the constitutional monarchy.
Moreover, the hugely popular opposition, Pheu Thai’s biggest challenger, has since regrouped under a new vehicle, the People’s Party.
(With Inputs From Reuters)
