PUBLISHED : 12 Dec 2023 at 06:00
The opposition Move Forward Party (MFP) is not concerned by rumours which claim the Democrat Party will join the government alliance, saying the pact signed by all members of the opposition bloc remains in effect, said MFP leader Chaithawat Tulathon on Monday.
He made the comment in response to the appointment of Chalermchai Sri-on as the new leader of the Democrat Party last week.
Mr Chaithawat said he did not believe the new Democrat chief would undermine the opposition bloc.
“We need to respect our colleagues, as unnecessary distrust will not lead to a better working atmosphere,” said Mr Chaithawat.
When asked about his hopes for the new parliament session, which opens today, Mr Chaithawat said he wanted all members of the opposition to come together for a discussion as a follow-up to the unofficial meetings which took place during the break.
While Mr Chaithawat has yet to receive a royal endorsement to be the next opposition leader, he said the meetings should begin right away so all parties could begin working as soon as possible.
As this session would be the last parliamentary session of the year, Mr Chaithawat said the House needs to clear the backlog of bills which have to be urgently approved — chief among which is the budget bill for the 2024 fiscal year.
He said while the opposition is not planning to launch a no-confidence motion in the upcoming session, there are plans to hold a general debate before the session closes.
Mr Chaithawat maintains that the opposition has the right to organise a censure motion to keep the government in check, but the opposition must be prepared with all the information they need before launching such a bid.
However, Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, secretary-general of the Progressive Movement, warned MFP MPs not to revert to “old tactics” in their struggle.
On Sunday, he took to X, formerly Twitter, to say that the party’s past strategies might not work any more, as “conservative forces” and the ruling elites are working together to paint the MFP’s reform ideas as impossible or impractical. As such, the party needs to step up its game and go beyond satire and online parodies to win the support of the public.
“If the MFP can’t do so in the next four years, how can the party gain 6-7 million additional votes [in the next election]?” he said.