Apparently Thailand's Constitutional Court is refusing to hear any cases brought up do that Pita can be renominated because it was not Pita himself who filed any of these petitions.
That effectively will mean whoever the next Prime Minister will be, it won't be Pita. Despite the fact that he won a landslide election, a comparative handful of his enemies managed to get their own way instead of what the people obviously want.
However, Pita does not strike me as the type who will just fade away. I don't think we've heard the last of Pita at all.
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Charter Court refuses to consider rejection of Pita’s renomination as PM
August 16, 2023
The Constitutional Court has unanimously refused to consider the Ombudsman’s petition seeking a ruling on the constitutionality of parliament’s decision to reject the renomination of Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat for prime minister.
The Court ruled that the three petitioners, two individuals who voted for Move Forward and another who was a Move Forward MP, were not the persons directly affected.
The ombudsmen asked the court to invalidate the parliamentary resolution that blocked the renomination of Pita, based on a meeting regulation that the same motion cannot be submitted twice in the same session.
The ombudsmen also asked the court to suspend the next vote on the selection of a prime minister, until the court issued a ruling on the petition.
The Court also refused to consider this motion and, accordingly, the request to suspend the next selection process is dismissed.
Parliament President Wan Muhamad Noor Matha has said he would wait for the Constitutional Court’s decision on the petition before scheduling the next round of voting.
He called a meeting of House and Senate whips today (Wednesday), to set the date for a joint sitting to select the prime minister.
https://www.thaipbsworld.com/urgent-cha ... ion-as-pm/
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In the Senate we trust? Or just a dream?
by Anchalee Kongrut, Editorial Pages Editor, Bangkok Post
August 17, 2023
Finally, the Constitutional Court made a ruling by throwing out the Ombudsman's petition. Critics will scratch their heads as to why the court took weeks to decide that it would not consider the case.
The Ombudsman in July asked the court to rule whether the Lower House had violated the constitution in using the House's meeting rule No. 41 in rejecting the premiership renomination of Move Forward Party (MFP) candidate Pita Limjaroenrat last month.
Now the ball is in the court of House Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha and the 500 MPs to decide the premiership selection process.
If the speaker upholds the constitution, the parties will be free to renominate their candidates. If Mr Wan decides to stick with the No. 41 meeting code, Pheu Thai -- and other parties -- can only nominate each candidate one time.
The ball has also rolled directly into the Senate's court.
Because the Pheu Thai-led coalition can muster only 315 votes for its prime minister candidate, it must depend on 61 votes from the senators.
That is because Section 272 of the junta-endorsed 2017 constitution empowers senators to take part in voting to select a prime minister, provided the 500-seat Lower House cannot gather at least 376 votes -- or 75.2% of the Lower House.
Personally, I find it regrettable -- but understandable -- that the MFP has decided not to vote for Pheu Thai candidate Srettha Thawisin.
After being ditched -- or backstabbed, according to fans of the MFP -- the progressive party took its political revenge, rooted firmly in its stance that it will not associate with any of the so-called "uncle" parties, by which refers to the two parties that are reportedly now courting Pheu Thai (or vice-versa).
While the MFP is likely to walk over to the opposition bench with vindicated pride, the Lower House squandered its final chance to "switch off" Section 272 of the current charter.
It needs to be mentioned that former "democratic" opposition parties -- led by Pheu Thai and the MFP -- have campaigned for "switching off" the senators for two years.
Now the opportunity has arrived, however, politicians have failed to rise to the occasion. Who is to blame but the cruel machinations of politics?
I still wonder what might happen if the MFP were to pull out the political rug by giving its votes to Pheu Thai.
Of course, that sounds like a brainless thing to do. After all, politics is about playing hardball, pulling out the rug, and creating chances and opportunities.
So, the prospective coalition has to lean on the Senate for the 60 votes it so desperately needs.
That would open the door for Bhumjaithai -- which came in third in the May 14 election -- and the fourth-placed Palang Pracharath Party, to nominate their respective candidates.
So from today, expect to see the likes of Senator Kittisak Rattanawaraha, who has been in the media a lot lately, telling reporters about the senators' preferences.
It is shocking to hear the senator predict that the candidate from Pheu Thai would not be prime minister and advocating Paetongtarn Shinawatra over Mr Srettha.
Recently, he said that if Pheu Thai's candidate failed, Bhumjaithai and PPRP should step in. At this point, I even ask myself what is the role of a senator?
Also, prepare to hear more from Sen Jadet Insawang during the expected grilling of Pheu Thai candidate Srettha next week, when the vote is tentatively scheduled to be held.
Personally, I was shocked to see how our senators crossed the red line in picking the next PM.
Make no mistake, senators have a legal mandate to select a suitable leader, and I always respect their decisions.
Yet some raise their demands constantly and set impossible conditions. First, they did not vote for Mr Pita because he wanted to change Section 112 of the Criminal Code, known as the lese majeste law.
Then, they said they would not vote for any party that wishes to revise Section 112. Like it or not, such conditions spelt doom for the coalition-leading MFP. Voters may be confused as to why the winning party is not leading the government.
The latest target is Mr Srettha. Last week, the Upper House's committee on political development, which Mr Jadet heads, met to discuss Mr Srettha's qualification for the role of PM.
Srettha
This came after former massage parlour tycoon, Chuvit Kamolwisit, made tax-dodging accusations against Mr Srettha.
I wonder whether the Upper's House committee can give him a fair go. It will take considerable resources to prove the accusation is true, if that is the case.
The big question is how the senators will react if one of the candidates is Anutin Charnvirakul, Bhumjaithai Party's candidate. Will they grill him on the party's cannabis policy?
And what will the senators' conditions be for accepting PPRP candidate Prawit Wongsuwon? Are they perturbed by the luxury wristwatch scandal he has been embroiled in for years?
Does the sub-committee led by Mr Jadet plan to ask the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) to reveal the investigation report on Gen Prawit's wristwatches?
For those who have forgotten, the Supreme Administrative Court in April ordered the NACC to reveal this report. But the NACC has managed to kick the can down the road for months.
I hope the senators will apply the same standards used for all candidates. The bigger question is, what will society do if they don't?
Sen Kittisak seems nonchalant about public reaction -- not to mention the views of the opposition.
"They don't have to shoo me away. We only have 10 months left in the Upper House. Then we will leave," he said, beaming after giving a media interview.
The senators will bid us adieu next May. But their political impact will remain.
Anchalee Kongrut is the Editorial Pages Editor at the Bangkok Post.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opi ... t-a-dream-
