Thai ex-PM Thaksin to return from exile on same day as key parliamentary vote

Thai billionaire to return after 15 years in exile

(AFP via Getty Images)

Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is poised to end his self-imposed exile and return to Thailand on Tuesday, his daughter has confirmed. This homecoming coincides with a crucial parliamentary vote that is expected to resolve a three-month-long political impasse.

The former telecommunications tycoon, who served as premier from 2001 until 2006 when he was ousted in a 2006 coup, is currently living in self-imposed exile after leaving Thailand to avoid a jail sentence on graft charges in 2008.

His return would still entail the risk of imprisonment.

“On Tuesday, August 22, 9am I will pick up my father Thaksin at Don Muang Airport,” his daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Instagram.

His daughter is one of the Pheu Thai party’s candidates for prime minister.

His return will clash with another parliamentary vote for prime minister, to be nominated by the Thaksin-backed Pheu Thai Party.

In the election, Mr Thaksin’s supported Pheu Thai Party secured the second position, trailing behind the progressive Move Forward Party.

Pheu Thai Party’s prime ministerial candidate Srettha Thavisin would need to secure a majority across the lower house of 500 MPs and the 250-member senate to become the premier.

Despite securing the highest number of parliamentary seats in the election, the progressive Move Forward Party (MFP) faced a hurdle as the military-dominated senate prevented its leader from assuming the role of prime minister.

Mr Thaksin had previously deferred his comeback after 10 August, citing the requirement for a medical examination. Upon his arrival, the 74-year-old would be subject to legal proceedings, as confirmed by Deputy National Police Chief Surachate Hakparn.

Analysts believe that Mr Thaksin’s return suggests that Pheu Thai has cracked a deal with political parties to secure a majority in the vote after gaining support from military-backed parties.

“Thaksin’s return on the voting day shows that he is confident that Pheu Thai’s prime ministerial candidate will be elected in one round,” said Thanaporn Sriyakul, chair of the Political Science Association of Kasetsart University.

Parties linked to Mr Thaksin have dominated Thai politics since 2001 but lost two prime ministers to military coups and another to a court ruling.