PUBLISHED : 1 Sep 2023 at 06:21
The new cabinet line-up will be submitted for royal endorsement today despite lingering doubts over the qualifications of some candidates.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said on Thursday that the cabinet line-up should be finalised and submitted for royal endorsement on Friday.
He said there was no need to worry about the candidates’ ethical conduct, as they were picked based on their qualifications, as required by law.
Mr Srettha also said the Council of State has been asked to verify the credentials of the candidates for cabinet posts. The council will issue its opinion today, he said.
“The candidates must be treated fairly. If the council says an individual qualifies for a certain post, then any lingering doubt about that person’s ability must be laid to rest,” he said.
One of the names in the line-up has attracted particular attention — that name is Pichit Chuenban, who worked as a lawyer for ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. His nomination raises questions about his eligibility to serve as a cabinet minister, as he served time in jail for contempt of court over an attempted bribery case when he represented Thaksin in a controversial land case back in 2008.
Pichit is tipped to become the PM’s Office Minister, according to sources.
On June 25, 2008, the Supreme Court sentenced Pichit and two of his colleagues to six months in prison after they tried to bribe Supreme Court officials by handing them a paper bag containing two million baht in cash a fortnight earlier.
All three represented Thaksin and his ex-wife, Khunying Potjaman na Pombejra, in the Ratchadaphisek land case, for which Thaksin was sentenced to two years in prison in 2008.
On Tuesday, Natthaporn Toprayoon, a lawyer and former adviser to the chief ombudsman, also sent a letter to Mr Srettha and the cabinet’s secretariat, calling on them to verify the qualifications of some others who are tipped to serve as cabinet ministers, namely, Bhumajaithai leader Anutin Charnvirakul; Palang Pracharath secretary-general Capt Thamanat Prompow; Suriya Jungrungreangkit of Pheu Thai; and Pheu Thai’s Somsak Thepsutin.
Mr Natthaporn said that Mr Anutin, who is tipped to serve as the interior minister, was accused by Pheu Thai’s secretary-general Prasert Chantararuanghtong during a no-confidence debate of dereliction of duty and lack of transparency in the procurement of Covid-19 vaccines. He also said Capt Thamanat is not fit to hold a cabinet post given his conviction and incarceration for a drug-related offence in Australia in the 1990s.