Thailand’s newly appointed Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has selected her cabinet, which is set to be submitted for royal endorsement in the coming days and could take office by the middle of the month.
The House of Representatives selected Paetongtarn as prime minister on August 16, two days after Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin was unseated in a shock decision by the Constitutional Court. The court voted to dismiss Srettha from office for a “gross ethical violation” after he appointed to his cabinet an official who had previously served a prison sentence.
According to Thai media reports, Paetongtarn said yesterday that the 35 candidates have been thoroughly vetted and verified, in order to avoid a repeat of this debacle that saw Srettha kicked out from office. She said that she expected to have the line-up endorsed by King Vajiralongkorn by the end of the week. Once the king signs off on the cabinet appointments, the new government should be in place by September 15, senior officials have said.
Paetongtarn’s cabinet is expected to represent a mix of continuity and change. Reuters cited local media reports as saying that Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa and Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira, both Pheu Thai appointees, will retain their posts. The cabinet will feature 11 new faces in ministerial and deputy ministerial roles.
According to the Bangkok Post, which cited government sources, Paetongtarn’s Pheu Thai party will hold 17 cabinet posts in the new government. The Bhumjaithai Party, Pheu Thai’s largest coalition partner, will be allocated eight cabinet positions, with Bhumjaithai leader Anutin Charnvirakul staying on as deputy prime minister and interior minister.
A further four cabinet posts will go to the conservative United Thai Nation Party, the Post reported. Party leader Pirapan Salirathavibhaga will stay on as a deputy prime minister and energy minister, while UTNP Secretary-General Akanat Promphan is set to head the Ministry of Industry.
The biggest change in the new line-up will be the omission of the military-backed Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), and its replacement with Pheu Thai’s former arch-rival, the Democrat Party. Last week, Pheu Thai announced that it was cutting ties with the PPRP, which is collapsing amid a widely reported rift between party grandee Gen. Prawit Wongsuwan and a splinter faction led by Thammanat Prompao, a former Pheu Thai official who serves as the party’s secretary-general.
Thammanat and his faction will reportedly join Paetongtarn’s coalition in exchange for three cabinet posts. The Democrats, too, will be rewarded for joining the coalition: leader Chalermchai Sri-on is set to be appointed natural resources and environment minister, while Det-it Khaothong, the party’s secretary-general, will be appointed deputy public health minister. The remainder will be distributed among the smaller members of the coalition.