Pheu Thai vows to restrict ganja, crackdown on stock manipulators

In a series of tweets on Sunday, Pheu Thai PM candidate Srettha Thavisin said he had detected unusual price fluctuations in a company that was valued at 1 trillion baht.

He said the company’s stock price fluctuated by more than 15% in just one day, which should not have happened in the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), which is the second largest stock market in Asean.

He said some companies were able to manipulate their share prices because the number of small investors holding their shares was lower than the minimum. With not many small investors, the management can easily manipulate share prices for their own benefits, Srettha said.

He added that if Pheu Thai wins ruling power after the May 14 election, it would ensure the SET enforces strict measures to guarantee good governance and that listed firms meet the minimum requirement of small investors.

Also on Sunday, Srettha told reporters that a Pheu Thai government would not support the liberal use of marijuana, adding that it would be restricted to only medical use.

Srettha made this comment in response to Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul’s declaration on Wednesday that his party would only join a coalition that agrees to support the marijuana and hemp bill sponsored by Bhumjaithai.

The bill was tabled at the last House meeting but failed to clear the second reading before the House of Representatives was dissolved in March.

Caretaker Public Health Minister Anutin said the bill will not liberalise the usage of marijuana for recreational purposes but would restrict it to medical and consumer products.

On Saturday, Anutin reportedly extended an olive branch to Pheu Thai, saying the two sides should bury their past conflicts. He was referring to the row between their two patriarchs, Pheu Thai’s Thaksin Shinawatra and Bhumjaithai’s Newin Chidchob.

The split happened when Newin led his faction, “Friends of Newin”, out of Pheu Thai to support then-Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva as prime minister. Abhisit took over after Somchai Wongsawat’s government was ousted due to the dissolution of the People’s Power Party.

In response to Anutin’s comment, Srettha said he had no knowledge of any past conflicts but would focus on campaigning to help Pheu Thai win as many House seats as possible.

“After the election, Pheu Thai will select coalition partners based on its policies and we will certainly not support the full liberalisation of ganja. We will only support medical use,” he said.