Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has been ousted following a court ruling that he violated constitutional ethics by appointing a lawyer with a criminal record to his Cabinet. The decision has intensified political instability in Thailand.
This ruling comes just a week after the Constitutional Court dissolved the popular Move Forward Party and banned its leaders from politics for a decade.
The court’s judgment, announced on Wednesday, was passed by a majority of five out of nine judges who deemed that Srettha knowingly appointed a morally compromised individual. The next step involves forming a new government, with the ruling Pheu Thai party set to propose a new prime ministerial candidate for a parliamentary vote.
After the verdict, Srettha stated that he accepted the decision and expressed uncertainty about the continuation of his policies by the next government.
The ruling adds to Thailand’s turbulent political climate, characterized by frequent judicial interventions, party dissolutions, and coups over the past two decades. Srettha’s appointment last August ended a political deadlock but led to a coalition with military rivals. The case against him was initiated by military-appointed former senators who objected to the appointment of Pichit Chuenban, a former aide to ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who had a history of legal issues.
