Srettha denies Pheu Thai plans to cut list-MPs to thwart Move Forward
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has denied a rumour that the ruling Pheu Thai Party is planning to eradicate party-list MPs to prevent the Move Forward Party from winning the next election.
Sunday’s denial came after Thai Sang Thai Party leader Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan claimed that Pheu Thai was trying to increase constituency MP seats from 350 to 500 and remove all 150 party-list MP seats. Sudarat, a former Pheu Thai chief strategist, said the information came from a friend within Pheu Thai.
Srettha dismissed the accusation as “political games”, saying ministers had not discussed or worked on amending the Constitution to eradicate party-list MPs as this would need to be done through the parliamentary system.
He said any move to amend the Constitution would first have to be discussed by Pheu Thai members as it would be an important issue.
“Confusion is normal in politics, but I think we should focus on solving the problems of the people,” he said.
“It’s just a made-up story,” he said of Sudarat’s allegation.
Move Forward won most seats at the 2019 election but was condemned to opposition after junta-appointed senators voted against its prime ministerial candidate, Pita Limjaroenrat. Pheu Thai then formed a government coalition with parties from the previous administration.
Former Move Forward leader Pita said his party was not worried about changes to the Constitution.
He said however that any amendment should benefit people, ensure fairness among political parties and remove sources of political conflict. He expressed confidence that Move Forward would win the next election despite what he said was an unfair political system.
“We should not amend [the Constitution] to benefit politicians but rather to restore the people’s power in the long term,” he said.
Constituency MP seats should be increased from 350 to 400, and party-list seats should be reduced from 150 to 100, Pita added. He also proposed improving the criteria used to calculate the number of party-list MPs.
Move Forward is currently threatened with dissolution in a court case stemming from its push to amend Article 112, or the lese majeste law. The Constitutional Court will hear the case from July 3 and rule on whether the push amounts to an attempt to undermine constitutional monarchy.
