BANGKOK: Thailand’s Prime Minister hopeful Pita Limjaroenrat’s bid for premiership hit a stumbling block after he failed to muster the backing of more than half of the 749-member bicameral Parliament to claim the coveted position.
Despite being the sole nominee for the position, the Move Forward Party (MFP) leader faced challenges in securing the necessary 375 votes. He only received 324 votes while 199 abstained. A total of 44 members were absent for the sitting today.
The parliament is expected to hold another vote next week on July 19 and 20 which Pita can contest if nominated again.
Today, the vote for a prime minister kicked-off at 4.05 pm (local time).
It is a roll call of all 500 members of parliament and 249 senators (one senator resigned on Wednesday). They have to publicly declare whether they ‘agree,‘ ‘disagree,‘ or ‘abstain’.
Meanwhile, Pita said he accepted the result today; however, he would not give up.
“We will be gathering votes for the next voting,” he told reporters.
When asked whether Pheu Thai, which won the second-largest number of seats (141), should be given the opportunity to form the next government, Pita responded, “It’s not the right time yet.”
On the question of whether MFP would halt its pursuit of amending Article 112 of the Criminal Code, also known as the lese-majeste law, in response to opposition, Pita said it was the party’s stance.
“This is what we pledged to the people,” he said.
MFP, which won 151 seats in the May 14 general election and garnered more than 14.2 million votes, is leading a coalition of eight parties that together secured 312 of the 500 seats in the House of Representatives.
However, the coalition still needs 63 votes as the 249 junta-appointed senators may be a stumbling block in Pita’s quest for premiership. -Bernama
