Thailand : Prime Minister Survives No Confidence Vote In Parliament

Picture Courtesy : AP

Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha survived a no-confidence vote in parliament amid allegations that his government mismanaged the economy, bungled the provision of COVID-19 vaccines, abused human rights and fostered corruption. Nine other ministers also survived the vote, AP reported .

It marked the second no-confidence test Prayuth’s government has faced since taking office in July 2019, following a contested election after Prayuth seized power in a 2014 coup as the army chief. In February last year, Prayuth and five Cabinet ministers easily defeated a no-confidence vote in the lower house.

In the latest motion, his government was also criticized for misusing its power to promote police officials and for establishing a cyber unit to attack government critics on social media, among other complaints.

But a more serious allegation was that Prayuth has deepened divisions in society by using the monarchy as a shield against criticism of his government.

A student-led protest movement has campaigned since last year for Prayuth and his government to step down. They want the constitution to be amended to make it more democratic, and for the monarchy to be reformed to make it more accountable.