SEARCH FOR A LEADER: Chuan rules out Supachai as hier

Published on February 9, 2005

Former PM says Abhisit must take over reins

Former Democrat leader Chuan Leekpai yesterday dismissed any possibility of former Democrat MP Supachai Panitchpakdi replacing Banyat Bantadtan as the party’s new leader.

“Supachai’s term as WTO [World Trade Organisation] director-general is not yet finished,” said Chuan, adding that Supachai had told him he had a verbal agreement to teach at a US university after leaving his current post.

Supachai’s term as director-general of the WTO ends in August, and that has created some speculation in the party’s ranks that he might take over as Democrat leader.

At the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos last week, Supachai told The Nation he had been in touch with members of the Democrat Party, but had no plans to return to politics in the immediate future.

Chuan also suggested that deputy Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva should assume the leadership before the annual convention, because he was deputy leader after all.

After two years at the helm of the Democrats, Banyat Bantadtan yesterday resigned in response to the party’s heavy loss in Sunday’s election.

In fact, all of the party’s executives stepped down to pave the way for a party revival to try and keep pace with Thai Rak Thai, which won 374 of 500 seats in a landslide victory.

Abhisit, the first of eight deputy leaders, is expected to be chosen acting leader when the executive board meets tomorrow, in the lead-up to April’s annual convention when a new full-time leader will be selected.

“I, as party leader, must take responsibility for the defeat,” Banyat said yesterday. During the election campaign, Banyat vowed to step down if the party won less than 130 seats – its 2001 poll tally. The Democrats won just 94 seats on Sunday.

Secretary-general Pradit Pataraprasith, eight deputy leaders and another 37 executives also quit as they felt they should share responsibility for the defeat because they worked side-by-side with Banyat.

“I’ll leave the duty of carrying on with a new executive board,” he said.

The executives who resigned will also select acting executives tomorrow, while Niphon Boonyamanee, as first deputy secretary-general, is likely to replace Pradit.

Banyat marginally defeated Abhisit in the party’s leadership election in April 2003, causing a power struggle between supporters of the two senior figures.

Some of Abhisit’s supporters joined other parties.

Abhisit refused to comment about who might replace Banyat. But he said he believed the new leader would have a big task ahead of him to resurrect the party’s administrative structure and chart new strategies to challenge TRT.

The Democrats have to find a way to stay in the hearts of the people, and only big changes will enable that, he said.

Jurin Laksanavisit, a deputy leader expected to compete with Abhisit to serve as caretaker, said he supported Abhisit to take on the leadership before the annual convention.

But he would not rule out the possibility that he might run for the leadership in April, saying he had not yet thought about it.

Weerayut Chokchaimadon
The Nation

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