‘Chamber of Tricks’: House of Representatives gets yearend nickname

Parliament reporters on Thursday unveiled their traditional end-of-year nicknames for the House of Representatives and Senate, calling the lower house “The Chamber of Tricks” and upper house “Newin’s Guided Chamber”.

Reporters voted to coin a term for the lower house with a double meaning: “Liam (Jon) Shin” can also be translated as Shinawatra’s tricks (liam) when the word in parenthesis is left out. When “jon” is included, it translates to “the chamber well-versed in deception”.

Reporters also explained their reasons for choosing both meanings.

They pointed out that the year ended with the ruling Pheu Thai Party switching its coalition partners by kicking out the Palang Pracharath Party and bringing in the Democrat Party.

Reporters said no clear reason was given for ejecting Palang Pracharath from the coalition. They said there were only signals from former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Pheu Thai’s patriarch, that the party had to go.

This year also saw Pheu Thai and Bhumjaithai, the second largest coalition partner, plotting against each other in the House, they explained.

Bhumjaithai voted against bills sponsored by Pheu Thai several times, prompting Thaksin to call Bhumjaithai an enemy in disguise.

Reporters said Bhumjaithai cunningly pretended to support Pheu Thai’s amnesty bill, later claiming that its MPs had defied the party whip when they voted against the bill.

Senate: Newin’s invisible hand
 
Parliament reporters’ nickname for the Senate – “Newin’s Guided Chamber” – highlighted the alleged influence of Bumjaithai’s patriarch, Newin Chidchob.

Reporters transcribed the English word “navigator” into Thai, adding the letter “N” to create “Nawingator” to cleverly convey their meaning.

They explained that 150-160 senators are believed to be affiliated with Bhumjaithai, meaning Newin is able to steer votes in the upper chamber.
 

Wan Noor: House speaker with gecko feet

Parliament reporters voted to call Parliament President and House Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Mather “the dutiful speaker with gecko feet”.

They explained that the Prachachart Party politician had managed to perform his duties and cling on to his post despite pressure from Pheu Thai to replace him with one of its own MPs.

The nickname for Wan Noor conjures up an image of a gecko, defying gravity by clinging to the ceiling.
 

Mongkol: The pre-determined Senate speaker
 
Reporters called Senate speaker Mongkol Surasajja the predetermined speaker of the upper chamber. They used the term of “lock mong”, combining the English word “lock” with the first syllable of his name, an abbreviation of “mongkut” or crown. The term “lock mong” is used to describe a beauty-pageant winner suspected of being pre-selected.

Reporters explained that Mongkol won the Senate speaker post with 159 votes, allegedly thanks to support from Bhumjaithai, despite doubts about his qualifications for the post.
 

Natthaphong: ‘adrift opposition leader’
 
Opposition leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut of the People’s Party was dubbed “the lonely drifter”.

Reporters played on Natthaphong’s nickname, Teng, to come up with “kweng, teng teng” or “adrift and lonely”.

They cited Natthaphong’s perceived lack of charisma, in contrast with his predecessor, former Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat.

The opposition under Natthaphong’s leadership lacked clarity, giving the impression he was just adrift in politics, they added.
 

Rising and waning stars
 
Reporters skipped their annual tradition of naming Parliament’s rising star, instead selecting two “fallen stars” – PPRP leader Prawing Wongsuwan and People’s Party MP Tisana Choonhavan.

They reasoned that Prawit missed 84 out of 95 House meetings this year despite signing in as present. Tisana’s performances in the House had failed to live up to expectations, given her status as granddaughter of former prime minister Chatichai Choonhavan, they added. The Bangkok MP had got her numbers wrong during a debate and called on the government to guarantee migrant worker rights, prompting critics to call her a Myanmar MP.
 

Phrase of the year
 
Parliament reporters chose an excerpt from Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s policy statement as their phrase of the year.

The excerpt promises to “give Thais enough to live on and maintain their pride and dignity”.

They explained that the phrase made headlines and has been ridiculed for running against the current economic downturn.
 

Event of the year
 
Reporters selected Pheu Thai’s formal invitation to the Democrats to join the coalition on August 28 as the event of the year.

They reasoned that the two parties had been arch enemies for over two decades, before the Democrats laid aside almost 80 years of ideological principles to join the coalition.
 

Antagonists of the year
 
Parliament reporters named Deputy House Speaker Pichet Chuamuangphan and former Public Health Ministry speaker Cholnan Srikaew as the year’s top pair of rivals.

They said that despite both men being Pheu Thai MPs, they frequently clashed during House debates. When Pichet chaired meetings, Cholnan often rose to point his finger and accuse him of failing to maintain order.

Pichet typically retorted by telling Cholnan that if he wanted his post, he should come out and say so directly.