Ousted Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was banned from politics for five years, along with 110 Thai Rak Thai (TRT) executives, after a top court dissolved the political party on Wednesday over electoral fraud.
”All of the TRT party executives at the time the wrongdoing was committed will be subject to the ban. Even if they quit later, they cannot escape the guilt,” said one of the nine judges ruling on the party.
Thaksin resigned as party head days after being ousted in a coup last September.
Current TRT leader Chaturon Chaisang said immediately after the announcement that the ban was ”totally unexpected” but urged party loyalists not to fight the court’s decision.
”But even if we don’t agree with the ruling, I ask all TRT members not to protest or oppose the ruling,” he said.
”I plea to all of the people across the country to remain calm and exercise your thoughts to solve the problem. As long as you still like TRT policies, we will go ahead together,” he added. — AFP
