Move Forward Party leader and prime ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat (left) talks to mediapersons after accompanying his party's newly elected House of Representatives members to report to the Parliament in Bangkok on June 27, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
BANGKOK – Thailand's election commission on Wednesday recommended the Constitutional Court disqualifies prime ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat as a lawmaker, dealing a major blow to the election winners on the eve of a vote on the premiership.
The commission said in a statement it found merit in a complaint alleging Pita, the leader of the progressive Move Forward Party, was unqualified to run the May 14 election because of his ownership of shares in a media company in violation of electoral rules.
A source from the commission, who declined to be identified, told Reuters it would also request Pita be suspended as a parliamentarian pending the court's ruling.
There was no immediate indication the Thailand's election commission's recommendation would prevent Pita Limjaroenrat from contesting Thursday's vote, where the 42-year-old faces a challenge to win the required backing of more than half of the members of parliament, including members of the upper house Senate opposed to his party's agenda
There was no immediate indication the commission's recommendation would prevent Pita from contesting Thursday's vote, where the 42-year-old faces a challenge to win the required backing of more than half of the members of parliament, including members of the upper house Senate opposed to his party's agenda.
Pita said the commission's action was unfair as he had been given no chance to give his side of things.
"The regulations allows me to defend myself. This is a bit rushed, one day before the PM vote, it shouldn't have happened," he told reporters.
Buoyed by massive support from young voters for its bold reform plans, Move Forward and another opposition party thumped rivals in the May election.
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Move Forward beat the populist Pheu Thai party, that had been expected to win, by 10 seats and the two parties together hope to form a coalition government after Thursday's vote.
'Fight has begun'
The election commission has been investigating a complaint alleging Pita's ownership of 42,000 shares in media firm iTV at the time of his registration made him ineligible to stand in the May 14 election.
Pita has maintained no rules were violated because iTV has not been an active mass media organisation for many years.
The US-educated former executive of ride-hailing app Grab is backed by an eight-party alliance that controls 312 of the seats in the lower house of parliament.
He is expected to run unopposed on Thursday but still needs 64 more votes, either from rival parties in the lower house or the Senate, challenge that could now be even more difficult.
In another setback, Democrat Party politician Chaichana Dechdecho told Reuters his party's 25 lawmakers would not back Pita in Thursday's vote because of his party's plans to amend a law that prohibits insulting the monarchy.
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Senator Jetn Sirathranon told Reuters the commission's recommendation that Pita be disqualified would undermine support for him.
"A prime minister of Thailand has to be dignified and untarnished," he said.