The leader of Thailand's election-winning Move Forward Party met fresh obstacles in his prime ministerial bid on Wednesday, as a court suspended him as a lawmaker and rivals mounted a parliamentary challenge to try to scuttle his nomination, Ednews reports citing Reuters.
U.S.-educated liberal Pita Limjaroenrat has an extremely difficult path to the top job, needing the backing of more than half of the bicameral parliament and to overcome fierce resistance from a royalist military at odds with his party's anti-establishment ambitions.
The legislature convened for Pita's second shot at the top job on Wednesday but his rivals moved immediately to derail him by questioning the parliamentary rule under which he was nominated by his eight-party alliance.
As an hours-long debate ensued, the Constitutional Court separately announced Pita had been temporarily suspended as a lawmaker over an allegation that he violated election rules by holding shares in a media firm, taking on its second complaint against him in six days.