Ruling against Move Forward won’t affect economy, central bank says
The Bank of Thailand (BOT) estimates that the ruling of the Constitutional Court on Wednesday that the election campaign of Move Forward Party was unconstitutional might, in the short term, affect the confidence of investors, but is unlikely to have a significant impact on the country’s economic foundations.
The Constitutional Court ruled unanimously on Wednesday that the main opposition party and its former leader, Pita Limjaroenrat, breached the charter with their campaign to amend Article 112 of the Criminal Code, also known as the lese majeste law.
The court ruled that the election campaigns were unconstitutional and an effort to topple the democratic system of government with the King as head of state. It ordered Pita and the party to stop seeking to annul or amend Article 112 either through speech or writing or any other way of expression immediately.
BOT spokesperson Chayawadee Chaianant said on Wednesday that throughout Thailand’s political history, no major political events had significantly affected people’s fundamental economic activities, such as public consumption.
She added that the central bank would however monitor the political situation closely.
Move Forward won the most MP seats during the May 2023 general election, but failed to secure Senators’ approval during parliamentary voting for Prime Minister, due to the party’s strong stance on amending Article 112.
After the ruling was announced on Wednesday, Move Forward Party leader Chaithawat Tulathon said that the Constitutional Court’s ruling against his party would be detrimental to Thailand's political landscape, while reiterating that the party has no intention to overthrow the monarchy.
