The dismissed Thailand’s Prime Minister, Srettha Thavisin walks to address members of media after Thailand’s Constitutional Court ruled on dismissal case at the Government House, in Bangkok, Thailand on August 14, 2024. | Photo Credit: Reuters
Thailand’s Constitutional Court dismissed Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin from office on Wednesday after barely a year in office, turning the country into fresh turmoil and creating deeper uncertainty about the political future of the kingdom.
Mr. Srettha, who took office just over a year ago was accused of breaching the ethnics by appointing an ally of his benefactor who had served a jail term to his cabinet.
Many Thais saw Mr. Srettha as a figurehead prime minister, with Mr. Thaksin playing a powerful behind-the-scenes role. Wednesday’s ruling served as a warning to the ambitions of Mr. Thaksin, himself a former prime minister and long a foil to Thailand’s royalist-military establishment.
Mr. Srettha’s removal is likely to increase the disillusionment of many Thais, who already see the case as the latest proof of intervention by an unelected establishment that is quashing the people’s will. Last week, the same court ordered the disbandment of the Move Forward Party, a progressive party that won last year’s election but was blocked from forming a government.
The Constitutional Court made the ruling on Wednesday afternoon in a 5-4 decision.
Reading the ruling, Judge Punya Udchachon said Srettha must have known Pichit Cheuban, a lawyer for the powerful Shinawatra political clan, had served time in jail and was therefore ineligible for a ministerial post when he appointed Pichit to the cabinet.
The appointment showed Srettha “has no honesty and breached ethical standards,’’ the judge added.
A downcast Srettha, who did not attend the court hearing, said he was dismayed by the ruling, which hobbled his government after 11 months of turmoil characterised by infighting, policy inertia and economic woes.
“The show is over. I’ve done everything as honestly as possible the past year … I insist that I have never been the source of division and conflict,’’ he told reporters outside the Government House.
“I’m sad that I’ve been judged and I’m going to go down in history as a prime minister who has breached serious ethics when I’ve been honest all along. Being prime minister has been my greatest honour.’’
泰國總理斯雷塔·塔維辛被法庭逐出辦公室
泰國憲法法院週三解除了上任不到一年的總理斯雷塔·塔維辛(Srettha Thavisin)的職務，使該國陷入新的動盪，並給該國的政治未來帶來了更深的不確定性。
斯雷塔上任僅一年多，他被指控任命其恩人的一位曾入獄的盟友進入內閣，違反了道德規範。
許多泰國人將斯雷塔視為傀儡總理，而他信則扮演強大的幕後角色。 週三的裁決是對他信的野心的警告，他信本人是前總理，長期以來一直是泰國保皇黨軍事機構的陪襯。
斯雷塔的下台可能會加劇許多泰國人的幻滅感，他們已經將此案視為非民選機構幹預壓制人民意願的最新證據。 上週，同一法院下令解散前進黨，這是一個進步黨，贏得了去年的選舉，但組成政府被阻止。
憲法法院週三下午以5比4的結果做出了裁決。
Punya Udchachon 法官在宣讀裁決後表示，Srettha 一定知道 Pichit Cheuban 是強大的西那瓦政治家族的律師，曾在監獄服刑，因此在任命 Pichit Cheuban 進入內閣時，他沒有資格擔任部長職位。
法官補充說，這項任命表明斯雷塔「不誠實，違反了道德標準」。
情緒低落的斯雷塔沒有出席法庭聽證會，他表示，他對這一裁決感到沮喪，該裁決使他的政府在經歷了 11 個月的內訌、政策惰性和經濟困境的動盪之後陷入困境。
「演出結束了。 在過去的一年裡，我盡可能誠實地做了所有事情……我堅持認為，我從來都不是分裂和衝突的根源，」他在總督府外告訴記者。
「我很遺憾自己受到了評判，作為一名首相，我將載入史冊，因為我一直很誠實，但我卻違反了嚴重的道德規範。 擔任總理是我最大的榮幸。
Comments