Joe McConnell
A Thai court has removed Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin for appointing a former lawyer who had previously been jailed to his cabinet.
The Constitutional Court ruled that Mr Srettha had violated “ethical rules” by “displaying provocative behavior.”
Srettha, 67, who has been in power for less than a year, is the third prime minister in 16 years to be removed by the same court.
He will be replaced by an interim leader until Thailand’s parliament convenes to elect a new prime minister.
“I am confident in my honesty… I am sorry, but I am not saying that I disagree with the sentence,” he said at a press conference shortly after the verdict.
The verdict signals greater political uncertainty for a country that has seen numerous coups, most recently in 2014, when the military seized power.
On Wednesday, the court voted five to four to remove Mr. Srettha from office. The court’s ruling is final and cannot be appealed.
Earlier in May, the court accepted a petition filed by about 40 senators seeking to remove the prime minister from office over the appointment of Pichit Chuenban, who had previously been sentenced to six months in prison for attempted corruption.
Mr Sretta became prime minister despite his party, Pheu Thai, not being a major winner in last year’s election that ended nine years of military rule in Thailand.
Voters handed a surprising victory to the young reformist Move Forward party, but the military-appointed Senate prevented it from forming a government.
Pheu Thai then struck a deal with other military-backed parties to form a governing coalition, excluding Move Forward, and Mr Srettha found himself at the helm.
This is the latest in a series of recent high-profile rulings by the court.
Last week is Move Forward party dissolved for making unconstitutional electoral promises and for banning the party leaders (11 parliamentarians) from politics for 10 years.
