Barkar Nash (Page 938)

The Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), which leads the caretaker government, would accept the chance to join the next coalition government if it is invited, said its secretary-general.

“PPRP’s chance will come when a prime minister is installed and they invite us to join the government,” Thamanat Prompow said on Sunday. He was voted PPRP secretary-general just after its leader Prawit Wongsuwon resigned.

Representatives of PPRP met executives of the Pheu Thai Party last week and PPRP has not been contacted since, Capt Thamanat said.

Pheu Thai is taking the lead in forming the next government after Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of the Move Forward Party (MFP), failed to win a parliamentary vote for the prime minister’s post on July 13.

MFP and Pheu Thai are the two key parties in their eight-party coalition alliance which has 312 of 500 House representatives. Their House votes could not make a majority vote when both elected House representatives and 249 military-appointed senators voted for prime minister on July 13.

Asked if any parties outside the eight-party alliance would vote for a prime ministerial candidate from Pheu Thai, Capt Thamanat did not give an answer but said his party would prefer to wait for all factors to become clear first.

He expected clear directions on Tuesday and said a prime minister should be elected on either Friday or Aug 15. He did not elaborate.

Capt Thamanat denied that his return as PPRP’s secretary-general was meant to prepare the party to join the next coalition government. The party was restructured for its own growth, he said.

Asked about the possibility of PPRP working together with Pheu Thai, he said that PPRP MPs were formerly affiliated with Pheu Thai, so PPRP will not have any problem if it joins the next coalition government.

Capt Thamanat was among 21 former PPRP MPs who were expelled from the party. He returned to the party early this year. PPRP won 40 House seats in the May 14 election, coming fourth after MFP, Pheu Thai and the Bhumjaithai Party.

NARATHIWAT: Security officials have been ordered to examine 52 other warehouses in this southern border town after a huge fireworks explosion at a godown in Sungai Kolok district on Saturday, leaving 12 people killed, 121 injured and nearly 300 houses damaged, about 50 of them totally destroyed.

Lt Gen Santi spoke after visiting a relief centre set up on the sports field of the Muno tambon administration organisation in Sungai Kolok, where he was briefed on the explosion.

He said some 52 other warehouses in the provinces must be examined to see whether they were built with valid permission and had been properly used to prevent a recurrence of the Saturday incident.  

Explosive ordnance disposal teams should thoroughly scan the site of the explosion to determine the quantity of fireworks stored illegally in the warehouse. It was initially believed at least 5 tonnes of fireworks had been kept there, judging from the two deep holes left at the site by the powerful blast, Lt Gen Santi said.

Pol Maj Gen Anurut Im-ab, the Narathiwat police chief, said the owner of the godown would be charged with recklessness causing deaths and injuries under the Criminal Code and the laws on arms, ammunition and explosives.

Pending further investigation, the warehouse owner, who has been summoned to report to police, may also be charged for violating the Factory Act of 1992 and the Labour Protection Act of 1998.

The Bhumjaithai Party will not join a coalition government if it includes the Move Forward Party (MFP), Bhumjaithai leader Anutin Charnvirakul confirmed on Sunday.

The leader of the party which came third in the May 14 election with 71 House seats said that Bhumjaithai stood firm with its same old standpoint that it would not join a coalition government if the formation included MFP.

MFP won the general election with 151 House seats. It tried to form the next government with seven other political parties. The Pheu Thai Party which came second in the polls with 141 House seats was the other big ally in the coalition group.

“If the eight-party alliance remains as declared in the MoU, the ninth ally will never be Bhumjaithai. Please rest assured,” said Mr Anutin who is also caretaker deputy prime minister and public health minister.

The eight-party alliance had 312 House votes.

Mr Anutin said he never heard of any initiative to form a coalition government with nine political parties to obtain a majority vote for prime minister from 500 MPs in the elected House and the Senate with 249 senators.

Since he discussed coalition government formation with Pheu Thai on July 22, he has not been contacted to have a talk on this issue again, Mr Anutin said.

Mr Anutin refused to comment on the possibility of the MFP being excluded from the next coalition government.

Meanwhile, MFP list MP Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn wrote on Facebook that there were many rumours that the MFP would be excluded from the coalition alliance and made an opposition party, and he considered them as efforts to divide the eight-party alliance.

Without the MFP, a coalition government would not be able to answer questions from the people, he wrote.

Prasert Chanthararuangthong, secretary-general of the Pheu Thai Party, said the eight hopeful coaltion parties will meet officially before the parliament again votes for prime minister, possibly on Aug 4 (Froday).

On July 13 MFP leader and prime ministerial candidate Pita Limjaroenrat failed to win a majority vote from the parliament to become prime minister. On July 19 the parliament rejected his renomination.

Most people are of the opinion that the Move Forward Party failed in a bid to form a government and the nomination of its leader Pita Limjaroenrat for prime minister because of its being adamant not to leave out some of its policies, according to an opinion survey by the National Institute of Development Administration, or Nida Poll.

Most people think the Move Forward Party (MFP) failed in a bid to form a government with its leader Pita Limjaroenrat as prime minister because of its insistence not to compromise on some of its policies, according to an opinion survey by the National Institute of Development Administration, or Nida Poll.

The poll was conducted on July 24-26 by telephone interviews with 1,310 people aged 18 and over of various levels of education, occupations and incomes throughout the country.

Asked which mistakes had led to the MFP’s failure to form a government and elect Mr Pita as prime minister, the answers varied as follows:

• 42.98% said the MFP refused to drop some of its policies in exchange for more support

• 30.46% did not think the MFP had made any mistakes

• 27.56% said the MFP was defeated in a political game in parliament

• 11.68% said the MFP had been reclusive, causing it to have no political allies

• 10.23% said the MFP had no true understanding of Thai political culture

• 9.54% said the MFP was not careful enough about the qualifications of its prime ministerial candidate

• 7.94% said the MFP had made a lot of political enemies

• 7.86% said some of its supporters’ behavior deprived the MFP of support in parliament

• 7.56% said the MFP relied too much on its supporters’ groups

• 6.11% said the MFP was too complacent about its 14 million votes and 151 MPs

• 5.88% said the MFP’s advisers miscalculated the situation

• 0.53% had no answer or were not interested

Asked whether political protests would erupt if the MFP ended up being in opposition, the answers were:

• 35.19% said there would be major rallies, but controllable
• 24.81% said there would be small rallies and controllable
• 23.16% said there would be major rallies that could get out of control
• 11.99% said there would not be any rally
• 2.90% said there would be some small rallies, but they would be uncontrollable
• 1.45% had no answer or were not interested

The MFP formed an alliance with the Pheu Thai and six other smaller parties, with a total of 312 MPs, to form a government. Mr Pita of the MFP was nominated for the post of prime minister in the first parliamentary voting on July 13, but he failed to get enough support from the Senate to secure the  375 votes needed for approval.

Most people are of the opinion that the Move Forward Party failed in a bid to form a government and the nomination of its leader Pita Limjaroenrat for prime minister because of its being adamant not to leave out some of its policies, according to an opinion survey by the National Institute of Development Administration, or Nida Poll.

Most people think the Move Forward Party (MFP) failed in a bid to form a government with its leader Pita Limjaroenrat as prime minister because of its insistence not to compromise on some of its policies, according to an opinion survey by the National Institute of Development Administration, or Nida Poll.

The poll was conducted on July 24-26 by telephone interviews with 1,310 people aged 18 and over of various levels of education, occupations and incomes throughout the country.

Asked which mistakes had led to the MFP’s failure to form a government and elect Mr Pita as prime minister, the answers varied as follows:

• 42.98% said the MFP refused to drop some of its policies in exchange for more support

• 30.46% did not think the MFP had made any mistakes

• 27.56% said the MFP was defeated in a political game in parliament

• 11.68% said the MFP had been reclusive, causing it to have no political allies

• 10.23% said the MFP had no true understanding of Thai political culture

• 9.54% said the MFP was not careful enough about the qualifications of its prime ministerial candidate

• 7.94% said the MFP had made a lot of political enemies

• 7.86% said some of its supporters’ behavior deprived the MFP of support in parliament

• 7.56% said the MFP relied too much on its supporters’ groups

• 6.11% said the MFP was too complacent about its 14 million votes and 151 MPs

• 5.88% said the MFP’s advisers miscalculated the situation

• 0.53% had no answer or were not interested

Asked whether political protests would erupt if the MFP ended up being in opposition, the answers were:

• 35.19% said there would be major rallies, but controllable
• 24.81% said there would be small rallies and controllable
• 23.16% said there would be major rallies that could get out of control
• 11.99% said there would not be any rally
• 2.90% said there would be some small rallies, but they would be uncontrollable
• 1.45% had no answer or were not interested

The MFP formed an alliance with the Pheu Thai and six other smaller parties, with a total of 312 MPs, to form a government. Mr Pita of the MFP was nominated for the post of prime minister in the first parliamentary voting on July 13, but he failed to get enough support from the Senate to secure the  375 votes needed for approval.

NARATHIWAT: The death toll from the fireworks explosion at a warehouse in Sungai Kolok district on Saturday is now 12, with 121 injured and 292 houses damaged or totally destroyed, the province’s public relations office announced on its Facebook page on Sunday.

Of the 12 deaths, seven bodies had been taken by relatives for religious rites while the five others were still at Sungai Kolok Hospital, three of them identified and two unidentified.

Of the 121 injured, 111 had returned home. Ten were admitted to Sungai Kolok Hospital for treatment of injuries – with only one in a serious condition.

Sanan Pong-aksorn, the Narathiwat governor, examined the damage from the explosion which occurred at about 3pm on Saturday at the warehouse at Ban Muno, the Moo 1 village in tambon Muno.

He said the place was initally opened as a grocery shop. The owner then obtained permission to expand it to become a warehouse to store merchandise. The godown was believed to have been used to store fireworks without permission.

The warehouse owner had been identified and summoned to report to police to testify, Mr Sanan said.

The governor said the incident occurred while welding was taking place at Weerawat Panit shop to make shelves. The explosion was believed to have been caused by sparks from the welding work.

The huge blast damaged 292 houses nearby, totally destroying 50 of them.

Most of the residents nearby were unaware fireworks had been stored in the godown. The building doors had been closed most of the time, except when two trucks occasionally arrived to unload merchandise.

Wichitchat Udomlarpcharoenkit, a rescue leader from a charity foundation in Sungai Kolok, said when he led about 40 rescuers to the scene they saw only houses and shops ablaze with debris scattered over a wide area. Many vehicles had their tyres flattened by broken objects. Heavy equipment was used to break open the damaged houses to bring out the killed and injured, with help from soldiers and defence volunteers.

The Election Commission (EC) may take criminal and civil action against a Move Forward Party MP for running in the May 14 election despite having been previously convicted and jailed for theft, according to its chairman.

EC chairman Ittiporn Boonpracong said the candidacy of Rayong MP Nakhonchai Khunnarong was actually barred by Section 98 of the constitution which set criteria for those running for parliament. The criteria include a court order for imprisonment.

If a candidate runs in a general election while knowing he is unqualified, he can be also considered as committing an offence in violation of Section 151 of the MP election law and held responsible for the election cost in accordance with Section 420 of the Civil and Commercial Code, Mr Ittiporn said.

He said that the EC was aware of the MP’s announcement that he would resign next week.

“There is the issue of a criminal offence under Section 151 of the organic law on MP election and there can also be a civil lawsuit to demand compensation for the organisation of a by-election,” Mr Ittiporn said.

Nakhonchai, aka Ice Rayong, announced his resignation on Thursday last week after admitting he had been convicted in a theft case and served 18 months in jail more than two decades ago.

The case dated back to October 1999, he said, when he was partying with a group of friends. He said he found a woman’s wristwatch but was arrested by police along with a friend who confessed to stealing it.

At the police station, he said he unknowingly signed a confession. He was sentenced to three years in jail, but the sentence was cut in half due to his confession.

PHUKET: The body of the Senegalese tourist who went missing after going swimming in the sea off Freedom beach in tambon Karon of Muang district on Friday was recovered on Sunday morning.

Lt Jadet Vachirasorn, the Tambon Karon Municipality mayor, said the body of Cheikhonuna Ba, 22, was recovered by a team of lifeguards at about 6.50am at Freedom beach where he went missing after being washed ashore.

Police and volunteers from the Kusoltham Phuket Foundation examined the spot and sent the body to Vachira Phuket Hospital for an autopsy.

The search command centre, set up by the Tambon Karon Municipality, has been closed, said Lt Chadet.

Lifeguards operating at various beaches have been instructed to remain vigilant, particularly during a weather disturbance, for the safety of tourists, he added.

After the Senegalese tourist went missing on Friday, searchers from the Karon municipality and other agencies were deployed on Saturday. They expanded the search area to Patong beach to the north and Karon beach about two kilometres south of Freedom beach on the west coast of the tourist island, but to no avail.

Kingdom unveils ‘Beyond Horizon’

King Mongkut Institute of Technology Ladkrabang (KMITL), Sinogen-Pin Petch Joint Venture and the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) have introduced a prototype of a luxury 25-seater rail carriage nicknamed “Beyond Horizon”, equipped with personal touch screens and facilities for those who travel with wheelchairs.

Somyot Kaitwanidvilai, dean of KMITL’s School of Engineering and the project manager of Beyond Horizon, said the project is part of the Transport Ministry’s innovative Thai First Policy.

It seeks to incorporate more homegrown hardware into the mass-transit network, using 40% of Thai-made materials throughout the production line. The aim is to prepare locally-made rail coaches for a spurt of upcoming nationwide network development.

In 20 years, Thailand will need at least 2,425 rail carriages to cater for railway network development. Each carriage could cost 50 million baht, or up to 100 billion baht in total.

During 2015–2018, rail carriages accounted for 80% of SRT’s import costs. This presents an opportunity for Thailand to become a manufacturer in its own right, using technology localisation to improve the country’s railway system, Mr Somyot said.

He said the Beyond Horizon project has received 32 million baht in funding, 25 million baht of which came from the Programme Management Unit for Competitiveness, while the rest came from the Sinogen-Pin Petch Joint Venture.

“The design of the passenger coach was inspired by airlines’ business class and high-speed railways’ first class,” he said.

Each carriage consists of 25 seats, eight of them in the super luxury class and the rest luxury class.

All seats are provided with private screens for on-board entertainment and food orders, Mr Somyot said.

The passenger train’s lavatory is built in a vacuum system like the ones on commercial planes, while the train doors’ universal design is easy for people with disabilities.

Mr Somyot added the ticket price of Beyond Horizon will be similar to the price of the SRT’s sleeper train’s tickets.

Maethus Lertsethtakarn, executive of the Joint Venture Sinogen-Pin Petch company, said Thailand’s neighbours — Myanmar, Vietnam and Malaysia — are able to manufacture their own carriages for domestic use.

However, Thailand still orders production materials from abroad, costing the country over 6 billion baht, he said.

“The research team has developed every element of the train which gives us thorough insight into maintenance and upgrades,” he said.

“The budget for imports will be cut and our technical know-how will be available for entrepreneurs.”

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha praised the project, saying it will help reduce costs by about 50% when compared to importing carriages.