Yingluck Shinawatra, who won a landslide victory yesterday in Thailand’s first elections since violence tore the country apart last year, said she would form a five-party coalition controlling 299 seats, or about 60 per cent of parliament, giving her a strong hand to fulfil her election promises.
The sister of fugitive Thai ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra plans to roll out a long list of Thaksin-style populist programmes that could influence the direction of Southeast Asia's second-largest economy - from subway extensions to big wage increases and various giveaways aimed at boosting spending power, especially in rural areas.
Thai stocks jumped more than 4 per cent as the scale of her victory persuaded some investors that Thailand could be more stable after the six-year crisis marked by the occupation of Bangkok's two airports, a blockade of parliament, an assassination attempt and bloody street protests.
“I’ll do my best and will not disappoint you,” the telegenic 44-year-old businesswoman told a gathering at her Pheu Thai headquarters.
Billionaire tycoon Mr Thaksin, who now lives in Dubai since being exiled over corruption charges, has described his sister as his “clone”, and the big win for her Puea Thai party is a significant step on his way to political rehabilitation.
Thailand's outgoing defence minister and former army chief said today the country's powerful military had accepted the opposition party's election win and would not try to prevent it from forming a government.
"I can assure that the military has no desire to stray out of its assigned roles," Prawit Wongsuwan, who is close to the military leadership, told Reuters.
"The army accepts the election results, and I can say clearly that we have never entertained any idea of doing anything that will damage the country."
Reuters