() – Thailand’s king has officially endorsed Paetongtarn Shinawatra, a descendant of the country’s most famous and divisive political dynasty, to become the country’s new prime minister.
Her appointment follows a series of twists and turns in Thai politics over the past week, during which the Constitutional Court expelled Srettha Thavisin, her predecessor from the same Pheu Thai party.
Paetongtarn, the youngest prime minister in the country’s history, is 37 years old and the daughter of ousted former leader Thaksin Shinawatra. She becomes Thailand’s second female prime minister, after her aunt – and Thaksin’s sister – Yingluck Shinawatra.
This Sunday, the secretary of the House of Representatives read the approval of King Maha Vajiralongkorn at the Pheu Thai headquarters in the capital, Bangkok.
Paetongtarn knelt and paid homage to a portrait of the king, before giving a short speech of thanks.
“This is the greatest honor and pride of my life,” he said after the sponsorship.
“My family, I and the Pheu Thai party greatly appreciate His Majesty’s kindness. “I am determined to fulfill my duties with loyalty and honesty for the benefit of the nation and the people,” she added.
He is expected to name his 35-member cabinet and lead ministers in taking the oath before the king. The new government, he said, will continue to promote a soft power initiative that takes advantage of the country’s historical and contemporary cultures, as well as tourism.
When asked by reporters if his appointment would be seen as the return of a dynasty, Paetongtarn said he would not be influenced by others. He said he could ask his father for advice, but stressed that he has his own ideas, adding that Thaksin will not take any role in the administration.
He pledged to put issues affecting the nation first and promised to cooperate with all parties.
“No one wants to repeat what happened to my father and aunt,” Paetongtarn said.
Thaksin’s economic and populist policies allowed him to build a political machine that has dominated the country for the past two decades, despite his overthrow in a 2006 coup.
But parties allied to the telecommunications billionaire – and former owner of Manchester City Football Club – have struggled to stay in power, having been forced out of power in the past due to coups or court decisions.
Yingluck was removed from office before the military seized power in a 2014 coup, and Thaksin went into voluntary exile in 2006 to escape corruption accusations after the military overthrew his government. He returned to Thailand from exile in August last year.
Last week, the Constitutional Court ruled that Srettha violated ethics rules by appointing to his cabinet a lawyer – and Thaksin’s assistant – who had served time in prison.
Srettha’s ouster was the latest blow to the Thaksin-backed Pheu Thai, which has frequently been in conflict with Thailand’s conservative establishment, a small but powerful clique of military, royalist and business elites.
This Friday, the national parliament voted Paetongtarn into office after she was nominated as the sole candidate to replace Srettha by the ruling Pheu Thai coalition.
She was one of three Pheu Thai party prime ministerial candidates ahead of May’s national election, and made international headlines when she gave birth just two weeks before the vote.
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