ABHISIT IS THAILAND'S NEW PREMIER

By D. Arul Rajoo

BANGKOK, Dec 15 (Bernama) -- Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva was elected
as Thailand's 27th Prime Minister by the country's lawmakers Monday, bringing
slim hopes that months of street rallies and chaos will come to an end.

He received 235 votes to beat former police chief and Puea Pandin leader
Pracha Phromnok who obtained 198, as the election went on smoothly without any
major distruptions, unlike previous sessions which had seen clashes between
police and anti-government protesters.

The British-born Abhisit, 44, will replace Somchai Wongsawat who was
disqualified by the Constitution Court early this month when the ruling People's
Power Party (PPP) was dissolved for election fraud. He is the fifth premier in
27 months, and the third in a space of three months.

His victory, and Democrat's return to power after a seven-year lapse, came
after a small group of former PPP members associated with former minister Newin
Chidchob jumped ship, as well as several parties who were part of the previous
six-party coalition government under Somchai.

Abhisit, who graduated from Oxford University, entered politics at the age
of 27 when he became the member of parliament for a constituency in Bangkok. But
he is not the youngest premier as speculated earlier as Marshal Plaek
Pibulsonggram and M.R. Senee Pramoj took office at the age of 41 and 40 years
respectively.

He had served as the party's spokesman, Government spokesman,
Deputy-Secretary to the Prime Minister, Chairman of the House Education Affairs
Committee, and Minister to the Prime Minister's Office when Democrat was in
power.

The country's oldest party lost power when Thaksin Shinawatra's Thai Rak
Thai (TRT) swept to victory in the 2001 general election on the backdrop of the
1997/98 economic crisis. Thaksin again won in 2005 but was ousted by the
military in September, 2006.

The Thai Parliament has 480 members, but currently there are only 437 MPs
after the dissolution of PPP, Chart Thai and Matchima by the court and their
executive members banned for five years, while a Democrat MP died Monday
morning.

Despite having about 200 MPs in their ranks, Pheu Thai, a made up of
Thaksin's supporters after their PPP was dissolved, did not field its own
candidate but supported Pracha to avoid another conflict with anti-Thaksin group
which had organised street protests for 192 days.

The anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) had vowed to
return to the street if another Thaksin nominee comes to power, and had
indirectly supported Abhisit's candidancy.

The Kingdom has been in political and economic turmoil since
anti-government protesters hit the streets on May 25, and subsequently seized
the Prime Minister's Office on Aug 26 before closing down Bangkok's two major
airports at the end of last month.

On Saturday, Thaksin, in a recorded speech from overseas, addressed over
50,000 supporters gathered at a stadium here where he blasted the military for
interfering in the selection of a new prime minister as speculation was rife
that Army Chief Gen Anupong Paochinda had told smaller parties and Newin's
faction to support Abhisit.

A small group of Thaksin supporters clad in their famous red shirts tried
to block the Parliament gates after Abhisit's victory was announced but was kept
at bay by riot police.

Abhisit was criticised in the past by government supporters for quietly
backing PAD during their street rallies, and several of Democrat leaders were
also part of the group which first came to prominence when they held massive
demonstrations against Thaksin in 2006.
-- BERNAMA