On topic: Why Thailand’s Pita failed to become prime minister

The winner of Thailand’s general election, Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat, failed in his recent attempt to become prime minister. How was he blocked from the premiership? Here’s a selection of stories looking at the country’s struggle to form a new government.

Move Forward leader Pita on Wednesday came up against two roadblocks in his bid to become prime minister, as parliament denied his second nomination and the Constitutional Court suspended him while it considers an electoral complaint. Read more.

Move Forward supporters protest in front of Bangkok’s Democracy Monument on July 19. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)

Around a thousand people filled Bangkok’s Democracy Monument on Wednesday night after Pita was denied a second nomination for prime minister by parliament and was suspended as a lawmaker. People dressed in black staged a mock funeral for conservative senators and judges to protest their actions, which are seen as obstructing the consensus reached in the May election. Read more.

Pita Limjaroenrat reacts after failing to win parliamentary support to become Thailand’s prime minister on July 13. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi)

It is an open secret that Thailand’s Constitutional Court and Election Commission — intended to be independent bodies — are under the military’s influence. The court suspended Pita as a lawmaker over his shareholdings in a media company, marking an extension of past democratization stumbles and political disputes in Thailand. Read more.