Yala: Pipat introduced Prasitchai, younger brother of Prasert, a six-term Democrat MP, to compete for Yala District 1. He reiterated his confidence in winning 30 seats in the South, as targeted, despite Abhisit's return to the Democrat Party. He also questioned whether the Prime Minister would dissolve Parliament within the four-month timeframe.
According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport, in his capacity as a core member of the Bhumjaithai Party, welcomed Mr. Prasitchai Phongsuwansiri, prospective MP candidate for Constituency 1, Yala Province. Mr. Pipat stated that Mr. Prasitchai is the younger brother of Mr. Prasert Phongsuwansiri, a six-term MP for Yala District 1, who later retired from politics. Mr. Niphon Bunyamanee then invited Mr. Prasitchai to join the Bhumjaithai Party.
Previously, in 2019 and 2023, the Bhumjaithai Party had candidates in all three districts in Yala Province. However, Mr. Prasitchai has now been invited to run in only one district. Further discussions will be held for the other two districts. Mr. Pipat invited those who share the party's ideology to drive political work in Yala Province. Meanwhile, some candidates have been accepted in Pattani and Narathiwat provinces, with plans underway to introduce more candidates in Pattani. He emphasized that Parliament has not yet been dissolved, and inviting those who would like to join the Bhumjaithai Party may face challenges with the existing party, leading to a lack of formal introductions.
When asked about the three southern border provinces, which are the Prachachat and Bhumjaithai party's bases, and strategies to penetrate them, Mr. Pipat stated that the Bhumjaithai Party had previously fielded candidates and received votes in the three southern border provinces. However, in Yala, the party had never had an MP but had candidates. In Pattani and Narathiwat provinces, the party already had MPs representing the party. In the 2026 election, he assigned Mr. Anutin Charnvirakul, the party leader, to find additional candidates in the three provinces to further strengthen the party's position. In 2019, there was one constituency MP in Pattani Province and one in Narathiwat Province in 2023. However, in the next election, they will have MPs in all three provinces.
When asked whether the previously set target of 30 MP seats in the South will remain in place, especially given the Democrat Party's new leadership, Mr. Pipat stated that the goal remains unchanged and that he is confident of winning at least 30 seats in the South in the next election. He remains confident, given the increasing popularity of the Bhumjaithai Party, while some rival parties have undergone changes and some remain uncertain. Therefore, political competition will continue, with no shortage of competitors in every election. Every election has at least four or five competing parties, making it a political competition.
When asked again whether the framework for dissolving parliament would remain the same as the original four-month framework, Mr. Pipat said that Mr. Anutin had not made any changes and was waiting for the Prime Minister to return from Malaysia and then travel to South Korea for a meeting. He expected to return on November 1st. He suggested that it would be better to ask the Prime Minister himself, as he alone has the authority to declare or not dissolve parliament.