Voters refuse to give PPP a full mandate

Voters refuse to give PPP a full mandate

According to the Election Commission's count of 93 per cent of votes cast in Sunday's elections, the PPP won 228 of the 480 contested seats, 12 short of a majority.

PPP leader Samak Sundaravej, a 72-year-old veteran of Thailand's political scene, said Sunday night that he would be the country's next prime minister and would approach other parties to form a coalition government before Parliament reconvenes in 30 days, as required by the constitution.

Samak told a press conference Sunday night that the support for the PPP was a statement on the military's September 19, 2006 coup that toppled Thaksin and installed an appointed cabinet of technocrats.

"The coup is dead," said Samak. "Now the people have had their say. The numbers that came out are an answer to those people," he said of the military.

It remains to be seen whether a coalition government under the PPP can be born, analysts said.

PPP's main rival, the Democrat Party led by Abhisit Vejjajiva, 43, has already announced that it will not join the PPP in a coalition but will become the opposition if it fails to lead a government.

The Democrat Party has won 166 seats nationwide and dominated the capital Bangkok, where it won 27 out of 36 contested seats. PPP received the other nine Bangkok mandates.

Coming third was the Chart Thai Party with 39 seats and the Peau Pandin Party fourth with 26 seats. The other slates to win seats were Ruam Jai Thai Chart Pattana with 10, Machima Thipataya with seven and Pracharaj with four, according to the latest unofficial tally.

Although PPP has won the most seats, it will have a hard time mustering a coalition government around it, observers said.

"We have a clean winner but not a clear-cut outcome," said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University.

The Democrats have done better than expected at the polls and have won Bangkok's backing, deemed a crucial factor to any government's stability.

"The provinces elect governments, and Bangkok topples them," is an old Thai saying.

The Democrats also received strong support for their party list candidates, winning 33 of the 80 contested party-list MPS, compared with the PPP's 34.

"That means that many people split their vote, casting ballots for their preferred MPs but voting for the Democrats as their favourite party," said Thitinan.

Samak will need to persuade the Chart Thai Party run by Banharn Silpa-archa to join him if the PPP is to muster a government, but Banharn has reportedly asked to become prime minister of such a coalition.

It appears that Thailand is heading for a weak coalition government that is not likely to last long, analysts said.

PPP has campaigned on a platform of continuing the populist policies initiated by Thaksin during his two premierships from 2001- 06 and assuring a safe return for the billionaire politician, who has been in self-exile since the coup.

Thaksin, a former telecommunication tycoon, reportedly moved from his mansion in London to his luxury apartment in Hong Kong to observe the election and hopes to return on February 14 to Thailand. (dpa)

08:52 Dec 24, 2007