Thai Constitutional Court to weigh petition seeking PM s dismissal

BANGKOK – Thailand’s Constitutional Court was due to meet on July 1 to consider a petition seeking the dismissal of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, as pressure mounts on a government battling to survive and under fire on multiple fronts.

The petition by 36 senators accuses Ms Paetongtarn of dishonesty and breaching ethical standards in violation of the Constitution over a leaked telephone conversation with Cambodia’s influential former leader Hun Sen. If the court accepts the case, it could decide to suspend the Premier from duty with immediate effect.

During a June 15 call intended to defuse escalating border tensions with Cambodia, Ms Paetongtarn, 38, kowtowed before Mr Hun Sen and criticised a Thai army commander, a red line in a country where the military has significant clout. She has apologised and said her remarks were a negotiating tactic.

The leaked conversation triggered outrage and has left Ms Paetongtarn’s coalition with a razor-thin majority, with a key party abandoning the alliance and expected to soon seek a no confidence vote in Parliament, as thousands of demonstrators demand the Premier resigns.

Ms Paetongtarn’s battles after only 10 months in power underline the declining strength of the Pheu Thai Party, the populist juggernaut of the billionaire Shinawatra dynasty that has dominated Thai elections since 2001, enduring military coups and court rulings that have toppled multiple governments and prime ministers.

It has been a baptism of fire for political novice Paetongtarn, who came to office abruptly as Thailand’s youngest premier and replacement for Mr Srettha Thavisin, who was dismissed by the Constitutional Court for violating ethics by appointing a minister who was once jailed.

Ms Paetongtarn’s government has also been struggling to revive a stuttering economy and her popularity has declined sharply, with a June 19-25 opinion poll released at the weekend showing