'Old guard' weighs idea of outsider PM

As the Constitutional Court is set to hand down a ruling against suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra for her controversial phone call with Cambodian strongman Hun Sen that was later leaked, most political pundits remain downbeat on her prospects.

- Chairith Yonpiam

Should she be dismissed, the ruling Pheu Thai Party would have to form a new cabinet.

Meanwhile, her father Thaksin, a former premier who is also experiencing legal trouble due to his privileged hospital stay after being handed a prison sentence upon his return from exile — dubbed the “14th floor saga” — is battling to ensure the party clings on to power. He has pushed Chaikasem Nitisiri as a replacement for Ms Paetongtarn in the event of her political demise.

At the same time, the “old guard” is eagerly coining the idea of having an outsider prime minister running the country. Such a contentious plan is anything but a parliamentary coup, which would not be acceptable anyway.

That is also the agenda of several political activists, namely Charnchai Issarasenarak, former senator Somchai Sawaengkarn, and Jade Donavanik. The latter figure, a legal expert who served as an adviser to the Constitution Drafting Committee, has filed a series of petitions against Ms Paetongtarn and Srettha Thavisin, her predecessor, alleging they violated Section 144 of the 2017 constitution, which prohibits MPs from using public money for personal or political gain.

In this case, the allegation is based on the shifting of a 35-billion-baht budget initially allocated to five state-owned banks, for use in the 10,000-baht digital wallet project, which was Pheu Thai's flagship policy. In addition, Section 144 of the charter prohibits the slashing of budget allocations used to fulfil legal obligations, particularly allocations set aside for debt payment to banks under Section 28 of the Financial and Fiscal Discipline Act.