BANGKOK – Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan o-cha, who is facing a censure debate in Parliament, refuted rumours that he has been pressured by certain lawmakers to reshuffle his cabinet and dissolve the House of Representatives.
Prayuth, who took power in a military coup in 2014 and was later appointed prime minister after the 2019 election, said he would complete the four-year term in 2023.
“There will be no House dissolution. We are working hard to tackle important issues. There is no reason why I should dissolve the House.
“Such thoughts have not crossed my mind. Whoever spoke about it should be careful, regardless of their aim to stir unrest during the no-confidence debate or whatever,” he was quoted as saying by the Bangkok Post.
Meanwhile, government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said in a statement today neither a cabinet reshuffle nor House dissolution were on the cards, and any news and information related to the matter are baseless.
He called on the public to have confidence in the government and the prime minister, who is fully committed in leading the nation and the people out of the Covid-19 crisis.
Thai opposition parties had on Monday began a censure debate against the prime minister and five cabinet members over the government’s poor handling of the Covid-19 outbreak in the kingdom.
The ministers targeted are Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob, Agriculture Minister Chalermchai Sri-on, Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin and Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaiwat Thanakamanusorn.
It is the third no-confidence move against Prayuth’s government since July 2019.
Prayuth, who is also defence minister, is expected to survive a no-confidence vote scheduled for Saturday with the backing of the governing coalition. – Bernama, September 2, 2021
