THAILAND PM REFUSES TO TALK ABOUT CABINET RESUFFLE

BANGKOK, Thailand - Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has kept everyone guessing her next move despite the changing political developments.
Although her brother Thaksin Shinawatra phoned in on Saturday to congratulate redshirt leader Jatuporn Promphan for his pending appointment, Yingluck kept mum on whether this meant she would shuffle her Cabinet.

• She said, however, that the people expected her to tackle their grievances instead of playing a political game.
• She repeated her stand that her government would let Parliament to play a lead role on bringing about reconciliation.
• She said she would allow the reconciliation process to run its course before tackling the legal issues involving Thaksin, including his homecoming despite his fugitive status.
• The prime minister reminded all sides not to draw a hasty conclusion that the Friday's verdict to strip Jatuporn of his MP status would lead to a further punishment by disbanding the Pheu Thai Party.
• She said her ruling party had fully complied with relevant laws and regulations in connection with the Jatuporn case.

The verdict said due to his detention from May to August last year, Jatuporn (left photo) had lost his party membership before the July general election. This resulted, in turn, to disqualify him from holding a House seat.
Reacting to the judicial decision, the Democrats have threatened to initiate a separate litigation holding the ruling party accountable for fielding Jatuporn despite the lack of party membership.

• Pheu Thai spokesman Prompong Nopparit said the Democrats had no justification sue the ruling party because the Jatuporn case was about an individual status without any linkage to the party.
• Prompong said he saw no possibility for disbanding the party.
• If the Democrats try to disband Pheu Thai, then the ruling party will retaliate by seeking to dissolve the main opposition party for bringing up a trumpup charge, he said.
• Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said he believed Thaksin's phonein to the reds rally was meant as a push for the new charter designed to strenthen the government.
• Abhisit said the ruling party was obsessed with the majority rule to push its agendas without paying due attention to the checking mechanisms.
• He said he suspected the new charter to accomplish two things weakening the judiciary and paving way for amnesty for Thaksin.

Commenting on the push for bringing the political disturbances in 2010 to the attention of the International Criminal Court, Abhisit (left photo) said he saw the push as a publicity stunt.
Thaksin just wanted to mislead the red shirts in to believing that he had not forgotten about their blood spilled although the push would not bear any tangible results, he said.

Source: The Nation