Prawit denies plans to quit Palang Pracharath amid disputes
Despite conflicts with his righthand man, Thamanat, the general insists he is committed to the party
Palang Pracharath Party leader General Prawit Wongsuwan vehemently denied he was planning to leave the party now that there are severe rifts between him and his former righthand man, party secretary-general Thamanat Prompow.
“I won’t resign. Why should I resign? I’m still performing my duty,” Prawit answered when a Nation reporter called him on Thursday asking for a comment on rumours that he has abandoned the party.
It was widely rumoured earlier on Thursday that Prawit had decided to quit the party after realising that he could not compete against the faction led by his former aide, Thamanat.
On Tuesday, Thamanat publicly declared that he had severed all ties with Prawit, whom he had served loyally for six years. He made this announcement after fights were reported between his faction and a group led by Prawit over four Cabinet seats. Another faction led by deputy party leader Santi Promphat was waiting on the sidelines to join the winning side.
On Tuesday afternoon, Thamanat declared victory, saying his side now controlled 29 of PPP’s 40 MPs thanks to support from Santi’s group. He also declared that his side will be the one winning the Cabinet quota.
However, it is still not clear which side controls the majority in the executive board, which will play a key role in expelling the “rebels” from the party. Thamanat had indicated on Tuesday that his side would be willing to leave the party if expelled.
On Tuesday, though, Thamanat declined to comment on the possibility of party leader Prawit calling a meeting with the executive board to eliminate his faction.
“We’d better not talk about the party’s internal politics. It’s over. We should not get involved in that party again. I no longer have anything to do with the party,” he said.
Asked again if he would wait for his group to be expelled, Thamanat said he would prefer not to talk about it. When another reporter asked if his faction would take charge of the executive board and expel
Prawit’s supporters, he did not respond and walked to his car.
When the reporter again asked which would be more likely – him or Prawit being expelled, he responded with a smile, saying “I’d better go expel the floodwaters”, referring to the flood crisis in the North.
