Thailand’s Pita Limjaroenrat vows to be ‘PM for all’ as Move Forward claims right to govern with Pheu Thai

The party’s change narrative of demilitarisation, protecting personal and political freedoms, and reforming the ‘112’ royal defamation law appeared to have cut through beyond their youth base

Asked about the upper house senate controlled by military-aligned parties, Pita said all sides must respect the election outcome and there was no use going against it

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Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat told reports there’s “no more room for a coup to ever happen in Thailand again”. Photo: Reuters

Published: 2:27pm, 15 May 2023Updated: 9:35pm, 15 May 2023

Thailand’s Move Forward Party on Monday said it was ready to head a coalition government with opposition heavyweight Pheu Thai, after an “orange wave” decimated the conservative vote and rejected the patronage politics which have long defined the kingdom.

A carnival of orange – the party’s colour – greeted leader Pita Limjaroenrat as he led candidates on a victory lap in Bangkok late on Monday.

Thais voted in record numbers on Sunday to banish an ulcerous decade of military-aligned rule which has seen teenage pro-democracy protesters arrested for criticising the monarchy, brought soaring inequality and ground the gears on Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy.

Move Forward Party Pita Limjaroenrat waves to supporters in Bangkok on May 15, 2023. Photo: Reuters

“I am Pita Limjaroenrat, the next prime minister of Thailand,” Pita said at the party’s headquarters in Bangkok earlier in the day. “We are ready to form the government,” he added, vowing to be a “prime minister for all”.

Shouting “Nayok Pita”, or “Prime Minister Pita”, several thousand Move Forward supporters on foot, cars and motorcycles swarmed around the truck carrying Thailand’s latest star politician as it travelled from the symbolic Democracy Monument.

An inflatable dinosaur – a symbol of the old powers his movement seeks to dislodge – was released above Pita’s head and flowers were passed to the Harvard graduate after he gave a speech thanking adoring supporters.

Pita Limjaroenrat and Move Forward Party candidates celebrate with supporters in Bangkok on May 15, 2023. Photo: Reuters

“He will change the country,” said a grinning 16-year-old who gave one name as Pim, one of hundreds of school pupils in uniform - a sign of the reach of Move Forward’s youth appeal. “The old generation has to let the party be the government now.”