Pita Limjaroenrat has resigned as leader of Thailand's Move Forward Party, paving the way for other members of the party to lead the biggest opposition group in the country's parliament."The current constitution specifies that the opposition leader must be [a member of parliament]," Pita said in his Facebook post on Friday. "However, I am still suspended as [member of parliament] by the court order. Then, I cannot work in the parliament as the opposition leader in the near future."
He did not mention who will replace him as party leader. Pita, 43, led the Move Forward Party in the May 14 general election, winning 151 of 500 seats and becoming the largest party in the lower house. But he failed to become prime minister in a parliamentary vote on July 13 as most senators did not support him due to Move Forward's progressive policies, including a proposed amendment to the country's lese-majeste laws. On July 19, Thailand's constitutional court suspended Pita as a member of parliament over his shareholdings in a media company. The suspension eventually blocked him from being renominated as the prime minister candidate for the second time. Pita's failure paved the way for the Pheu Thai Party, which won second place with 141 seats in the general election, to form the government. The party's Srettha Thavisin was elected Prime Minister on Aug. 22. Pita, however, vowed that he would continue to work with the Move Forward Party to push forward the agenda for change as well as to investigate and balance the power through the parliamentary process. The Pheu Thai party, which finished second in the May election, was able to form a coalition acceptable to the senators, and had one of its candidates, Srettha Thavisin, confirmed as prime minister. Srettha's coalition embraced military-supported parties that include members linked to a 2014 coup that ousted a previous Pheu Thai government. Move Forward’s bid to lead the opposition was complicated not only by Pita’s suspension, but also because one of its members is currently serving as the first deputy house speaker. Padipat Suntiphada was selected for the post while Move Forward was still seeking to form a government, but the rules bar members of parties leading the opposition from holding speakers’ positions in the House. It is not immediately clear if Padipat will resign from the post.
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