Yingluck's cabinet will be 'made in Thailand'
Yingluck Shinawatra insists that the cabinet is: 'Made in Thailand'. But her brother Thaksin seems to be interfering through an anonymous source.
For example, the Oracle of Dubai has previously said that he wants outsiders in the cabinet to give it an internationally accepted image and is now urging a rapid formation. The cabinet should be presented in the middle of next week.
In theory it could. Today Yingluck is elected prime minister. Her appointment can be confirmed by the king today or tomorrow. After she has been officially appointed, the line-up can go to the monarch. That will probably happen on Monday or Tuesday.
The musical chairs are now going on behind the scenes in full force. Potjaman na Pombejra, Thaksin's ex-wife, would exert pressure to get party financiers into the cabinet. As a result, the director of Siam Commercial Bank, a leading candidate for the post of finance minister, is said to have resigned.
Two ambassadors are eager to become foreign minister, as well as finance and defense a key post in the cabinet: the former ambassador in London and the current ambassador in Oslo.
Leaders of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD, red shirts) are lobbying for the appointment of red shirt leader Natthawut Saikua as PM's Office minister, a position that we do not know in the Netherlands (perhaps comparable to Secretary of State for General Affairs). Some party members are not happy about that. Natthawut has been charged with terrorism for his role in last year's April and May disturbances. He is free on bail.
Red shirt leader Kwanchai Praipana has called on his supporters to be patient and not to put pressure on Pheu Thai's leadership. 'If it looks ugly, I'll take care of it.' Yingluck says it is still too early to make any announcements about the possible participation of red shirts in the cabinet.
Army Commander-in-Chief Prayuth Chan-ocha, who, like other military leaders, is known to dislike Pheu Thai, denies that he was approached by Thaksin to discuss the defense candidates. Two names are circulating: former defense minister Prawit Wongsuwon and General Yutthasak Sasiprapa, deputy defense minister in Thaksin's cabinet.
There is also speculation that Tharit Pengdit, director of the Department of Special Investigation, will have to step down. This should come as no surprise as he has been hunting the red shirts intensively and in particular red shirt leader Jatuporn Prompan, who has been re-elected as a member of parliament for Pheu Thai. Whenever the opportunity arose, he asked the court to revoke Jatuporn's bail and each time the court refused – until May 12.