Thai PM returns to duty after court ruling
Thailand’s Prime Minister officially returned to duty on Monday after a court ruled last week that he had not overstayed his maximum term in office.
Thailand’s Prime Minister officially returned to duty on Monday after a court ruled last week that he had not overstayed his maximum term in office.
Prayuth Chan-ocha laid a garland and knelt before a statue at the Interior Ministry in Bangkok before chairing a teleconference meeting with provincial governors.
The Constitutional Court had suspended Prayuth last month while it deliberated a petition by opposition lawmakers that sought to force him from office.
The current charter limits a prime minister to eight years in power. Prayuth took charge in 2014, following a coup d’etat. The lawmakers said that this meant his term had expired.
But a majority of the judges decided the constitution, passed in 2017, could not be applied retroactively, and that the time served prior to its promulgation did not count. The ruling was widely expected.
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Protesters held several small demonstrations over the weekend against Prayuth’s return.
The political temperature in Thailand is rising, with a general election due early next year.
When asked by reporters, Monday, about his political future the Prime Minister replied “The future is the future.”
