(Bloomberg) -- Thailand’s ruling party will exclude a pro-military conservative group from its coalition, a move that’s set to further delay new Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s bid to form a cabinet.
The Palang Pracharath Party, which has 40 lawmakers in the nation’s House of Representatives, will no longer be part of the ruling coalition though some lawmakers or members may still be considered for positions in Paetongtarn’s cabinet, according to Pheu Thai Secretary-General Sorawong Thienthong.
The decision by Pheu Thai’s executive board came after its lawmakers raised questions about Palang Pracharath’s commitment to the alliance as its leader Prawit Wongsuwan did not attend a parliament vote on Aug. 16 to select Paetongtarn as prime minister, Sorawong said.
Pheu Thai, backed by the family of influential former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, will now discuss adding Democrat Party from the opposition to the ruling bloc to strengthen its position in the lower house, he said.
Paetongtarn’s father Thaksin had blamed Prawit, a former army chief, for orchestrating a plot to take down former leader Srettha Thavisin, who was dismissed by the Constitutional Court earlier this month over ethical violations in appointing Thaksin’s tainted family lawyer as a minister in his cabinet. In a dinner talk last week, Thaksin said Paetongtarn’s coalition didn’t need Palang Pracharath as it had enough numbers in parliament.
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Paetongtarn, who is Thaksin’s youngest daughter, has struggled to finalize her cabinet lineup due to the squabbling in Palang Pracharath and lengthy background checks on ministerial candidates.
The conservative Palang Pracharath party has been rocked by internal conflicts in recent weeks that saw the bloc split into two factions, one led by Prawit and the other by the party’s secretary-general Thamanat Prompow.
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