Thailand’s prime minister was forced to resign along with his Cabinet yesterday after the Constitutional Court ruled that he had broken a conflict-of-interest law by hosting TV cooking shows while in office.
“The defendant has violated Article 267 of the Constitution, and his position as prime minister has ended,” Chat Chonlaworn, the head of the nine-judge panel, told the court.
Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej’s supporters immediately vowed to bring him back to power, indicating that Thailand remains gripped in a deep political crisis that has virtually paralyzed the government, spooked the financial markets and scared away tourists.
Chat said that the Cabinet would remain in a caretaker position until a new administration is installed.
The judgment, broadcast live on television and radio, was greeted with loud cheers and claps from Samak’s opponents who have occupied his office compound since Aug. 26 to demand his resignation.
Samak, a self-proclaimed foodie, hosted a popular television cooking show — Tasting and Complaining — for seven years before becoming prime minister earlier this year. He made several appearances after taking office, breaking a constitutional prohibition on private employment while in office.
Before the court began its session, Samak said he would honor the verdict.
He was not immediately available for comment.
In his defense, Samak had claimed he was not an employee of the company that made the show and only received payment for his transportation and the ingredients used for cooking.
Kuthep Saikrajang, the spokesman of Samak’s party, said its members unanimously agreed to renominate Samak in Parliament as their candidate for the prime minister’s post. But the final decision depends on Samak as well on other parties in the ruling coalition, he said.
There was also no sign that the alliance supporters and protesters would now vacate the Government House compound.
“Samak was ousted by the court, but there is no guarantee he will not return in the next few days. So our protest will continue for the time being,” alliance spokesman Suriyasai Katasila said.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS