PUBLISHED : 1 Aug 2023 at 16:23
Thaksin Shinawatra will return on a private jet, landing at Don Mueang airport, according to a senior member of the Chartthaipattana Party and close friend who recently visited the former prime minister.
Chartthaipattana secretary-general Praphat Phothasuthon made his prediction after returning from meeting Thaksin in Hong Kong, where the political fugitive celebrated his 74th birthday last week.
Mr Praphat, who is also 74, said he and Thaksin were old friends and he always went to see him on his birthday, wherever he was.
Mr Praphat quoted Thaksin as saying that he would return to Thailand on a private jet that would land at Don Mueang airport. He would then be taken to a court and was willing to go to jail if so required, according to Mr Praphat, who is also caretaker deputy agriculture minister. He did not say when Thaksin would return.
The Chartthaipattana secretary-general denied that he and Thaksin discussed any special political agreement during their meeting in Hong Kong. Mr Praphat pointed out that Chartthaipattana and Pheu Thai had enjoyed close ties for a long time.
The Pheu Thai Party is trying to form the new government in the wake of the May 14 general election. It came second with 141 House votes. The Move Forward Party won 151 House seats but failed to win parliament approval when it nominated its leader Pita Limjaroenrat for prime minister of July 13.
Thaksin’s daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra is one of Pheu Thai’s three candidates for prime minister. She recently said Thaksin would return at Don Mueang airport on Aug 10.
Thaksin was overthrown by a military coup on Sept 19, 2006, while he was overseas. He has since lived in self-exile, based in Dubai, except for a brief visit to Thailand in 2008.
During his absence, the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions sentenced him to a total of 12 years imprisonment in four cases.
In the first case, the court found him guilty of abuse of power in his then-wife Khunying Potjaman’s purchase of state-owned land in Ratchadapisek area for less than the market value. In October 2008, he was sentenced to two years in prison. The 10-year statute of limitations on the court ruling expired in October 2018.
In the second case, Thaksin was sentenced to two years in prison after he was found guilty of malfeasance in a case concerning a two- and three-digit lottery.
In the third case, Thaksin was given three years in prison for abusing his position by authorising loans totaling 4 billion baht to Myanmar by the Export-Import Bank of Thailand. The loans were used to buy equipment from a telecom firm owned by his family.
In the fourth case, the former prime minister was sentenced to five years in prison when the court found him guilty of using nominees to hold shares in Shin Corp. The law prohibits any political office holder from owning shares in a telecommunications company.
The statute of limitations for the court decisions in the second, third and fourth cases has not expired.
Chartthaipattana Party secretary-general Praphat Phothasuton. (File photo)