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Bangkok: Patongtarn Shinawatra Approved prime minister by Thailand's king Merkel issued a statement on Sunday, two days after she was elected by parliament, paving the way for her to form a government in the coming weeks.
Paithongtarn, 37, became Thailand's youngest prime minister just days after his ally Sritha Thavisin was removed from office by the Constitutional Court, the central judicial authority in Thailand's two decades of intermittent political turmoil.
Daughter of divisive former prime minister Thaksin ShinawatraPatongtarn won a nearly two-thirds majority in a lower house vote on Friday to become Thailand's second female prime minister and the third Shinawatra to hold the post after Thaksin and her aunt. Yingluck Shinawatra.
House Secretary Apat Sukhanand read out King Maha Vajiralongkorn's approval, a mere formality, at a ceremony in Bangkok on Sunday.
Paithongtarn wore her official uniform, knelt in honour of the king's portrait before giving a short speech thanking the king and the people's representatives for their support as prime minister.
“As the head of the executive branch, I will do my duty with lawmakers with an open heart. I will listen to all opinions so that together we can move the country forward with stability,” she added.
Paithongtarn, who has never held government office before, faces challenges on multiple fronts, with the economy faltering and her Pheu Thai party waning in popularity, which has yet to deliver on its flagship 500 billion baht ($15 billion) digital wallet cash distribution program.
After accepting the royal endorsement, Paithongtarn hugged her father Thaksin and other family members.
In her first press conference, Paithongtarn said she would continue all of her predecessor's policies, including “major” economic stimulus and reform, tackling illegal drugs, improving the country's comprehensive health care system and promoting gender diversity.
She added that the government would not abandon its pioneering digital wallet policy, but would seek to “study and listen to additional options” to ensure the scheme was fiscally responsible.
“The goal is to stimulate the economy so that this intention remains,” said Paithongtarn.
The prime minister said she had no plans to appoint her father Thaksin to any government position but would seek his advice.
Paithongtarn said details of her government's policies would be presented to parliament next month.
The fall of her predecessor, Sritha, after less than a year in office is a reminder of the risks facing Paithongtarn as Thailand descends into a turbulent cycle of coups and court rulings that have dissolved political parties and brought down multiple governments and prime ministers.
At stake is the legacy and political future of the billionaire Shinawatra family, whose once-unstoppable populist group suffered its first electoral defeat in more than two decades last year and was forced to strike a deal with its bitter enemies in the military to form a government.
The unrest in recent days marks the collapse of a fragile truce between Thaksin and his rivals in the royal establishment, which enabled the business magnate to make a dramatic return from 15 years of self-imposed exile in 2023, with his ally Sritha taking over as prime minister on the same day.
More than a week ago, the court that fired Sritha over his appointment to a ministerial post dissolved the anti-establishment Move Forward party — the winner of the 2023 election — over a campaign to amend the insult to the king law that the court said threatened to undermine the constitutional monarchy.
The popular opposition, which is the biggest rival to Phuc Thi's party, has since regrouped under a new umbrella, the People's Party.
Paithongtarn, 37, became Thailand's youngest prime minister just days after his ally Sritha Thavisin was removed from office by the Constitutional Court, the central judicial authority in Thailand's two decades of intermittent political turmoil.
Daughter of divisive former prime minister Thaksin ShinawatraPatongtarn won a nearly two-thirds majority in a lower house vote on Friday to become Thailand's second female prime minister and the third Shinawatra to hold the post after Thaksin and her aunt. Yingluck Shinawatra.
House Secretary Apat Sukhanand read out King Maha Vajiralongkorn's approval, a mere formality, at a ceremony in Bangkok on Sunday.
Paithongtarn wore her official uniform, knelt in honour of the king's portrait before giving a short speech thanking the king and the people's representatives for their support as prime minister.
“As the head of the executive branch, I will do my duty with lawmakers with an open heart. I will listen to all opinions so that together we can move the country forward with stability,” she added.
Paithongtarn, who has never held government office before, faces challenges on multiple fronts, with the economy faltering and her Pheu Thai party waning in popularity, which has yet to deliver on its flagship 500 billion baht ($15 billion) digital wallet cash distribution program.
After accepting the royal endorsement, Paithongtarn hugged her father Thaksin and other family members.
In her first press conference, Paithongtarn said she would continue all of her predecessor's policies, including “major” economic stimulus and reform, tackling illegal drugs, improving the country's comprehensive health care system and promoting gender diversity.
She added that the government would not abandon its pioneering digital wallet policy, but would seek to “study and listen to additional options” to ensure the scheme was fiscally responsible.
“The goal is to stimulate the economy so that this intention remains,” said Paithongtarn.
The prime minister said she had no plans to appoint her father Thaksin to any government position but would seek his advice.
Paithongtarn said details of her government's policies would be presented to parliament next month.
The fall of her predecessor, Sritha, after less than a year in office is a reminder of the risks facing Paithongtarn as Thailand descends into a turbulent cycle of coups and court rulings that have dissolved political parties and brought down multiple governments and prime ministers.
At stake is the legacy and political future of the billionaire Shinawatra family, whose once-unstoppable populist group suffered its first electoral defeat in more than two decades last year and was forced to strike a deal with its bitter enemies in the military to form a government.
The unrest in recent days marks the collapse of a fragile truce between Thaksin and his rivals in the royal establishment, which enabled the business magnate to make a dramatic return from 15 years of self-imposed exile in 2023, with his ally Sritha taking over as prime minister on the same day.
More than a week ago, the court that fired Sritha over his appointment to a ministerial post dissolved the anti-establishment Move Forward party — the winner of the 2023 election — over a campaign to amend the insult to the king law that the court said threatened to undermine the constitutional monarchy.
The popular opposition, which is the biggest rival to Phuc Thi's party, has since regrouped under a new umbrella, the People's Party.
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