Puea Pandin remains a thorn in govt's side
Voting on the no-confidence motion has been set for today, but it appears as if Puea Pandin is the only coalition party that might not say "yes" to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and the other five ministers facing grilling.
Puea Pandin Party leader and Industry Minister Charnchai Chairungrueng appeared hesitant in voting for the Cabinet members saying he wanted to listen to information provided by the Opposition Pheu Thai Party before deciding. His remark breaks the tradition of coalitions, under which all partners support each other.
And it could be worse, because rumours have it that the party would allow its MPs a free vote when it came to Bhum Jai Thai Party's Interior Minister Chaovarat Chanweerakul and Transport Minister Sophon Saram during the censure debate. This could be a sign of rift within the coalition partners.
What has happened to Puea Pandin and could it affect the government's unity?
Looking back, Puea Pandin's leader and party members have voiced dissatisfaction in the government several times before.
When the troops dispersed the red-shirt protesters on May 19, Charnchai suggested that Abhisit step down to take responsibility for the crackdown. Charnchai had discussed the matter with Bhum Jai Thai's leader Somsak Thepsuthin and offered to talk other coalition partners into putting pressure on the premier.
But finally, his plan was sabotaged because Bhum Jai Thai's spokesman, Supachai Jaisamut, said his party's de facto leader Newin Chidchob and Chart Thai Pattana Party's Banharn Silapa-Archa still supported the ruling Democrat Party. This incident upset Puea Pandin, and the party decided to boycott a Cabinet meeting in protest.
During the May 25 Cabinet meeting, Puea Pandin Party discovered that it had not been allocated anything from the Bt4.9-billion stimulus package, which enraged Charnchai even more.
"The Democrats have never respected us [Puea Pandin]. We cannot accept this. Though we are a small party, we still have dignity. You [the Democrats] have made promises and you should keep your word," Charnchai was quoted as saying in the Cabinet meeting.
Though Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij apologised, saying he would find some money from other projects to allocate to Puea Pandin, Charnchai remained furious.
He said it was unfair, especially when compared to Bhum Jai Thai Party, who oversaw the Interior and Transport Ministries and was also given more money than Puea Pandin.
In addition, there is a personal war between Puea Pandin's Pairoj Suwanchawee and Bhum Jai Thai's Boonjong Wongtrairat. Pairoj once stepped aside for Boonjong to run an election in Nakhon Ratchsima, but Boonjong used his power as deputy interior minister to reshuffle Interior Ministry officials close to Pairoj and not allocate local development budget to Puea Pandin's constituencies.
A source from Puea Pandin said his leaders were threatening to vote against the two Bhum Jai Thai ministers during the debate today.
Charnchai has reportedly discussed the matter with his party members at his birthday party at Parliament on May 27.
"We should make the government know that we are upset over Bhum Jai Thai Party. If some votes for Chaovarat disappeared, they would feel shaken," the party leaders were quoted as saying.
It remains to be seen whether it is just a threat or if they will really vote against Bhum Jai Thai ministers.
However, political observers believe that Democrat Party's secretary-general Suthep Thaugsuban will not allow this to happen. Suthep yesterday showed confidence that members of the government would vote "yes" for all six ministers being grilled by the opposition.
Yet, he stands to lose his face as government manager if by some chance, some "in favour" votes go missing.
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