Yingluck leads new ministers in oath-taking ceremony before King
His Majesty the King yesterday granted a royal audience to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and 23 newly appointed Cabinet members who took their oaths in the monarch's presence before officially assuming their duties.
The Cabinet members gathered at Government House in the afternoon to pose for a group picture before leaving for Siriraj Hospital in the evening, where they had an audience with His Majesty.
Yingluck will this morning chair the first Cabinet meeting since the latest reshuffle to allocate responsibilities to the new ministers and their deputies. The Cabinet skipped its normal weekly meeting on Tuesday to wait for the newcomers to complete the oath-taking ceremony.
Deputy Public Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew said after the royal audience that he had been given the right job in accordance with his training as a physician, and that he would perform his duty as declared by the government before Parliament.
The Cabinet meeting today will also appoint a new spokesman for the government, replacing Sansanee Nakpong, who has been named a minister attached to the Prime Minister’s Office. Tossaporn Sereerak has been tipped to become the new government spokesman.
New Interior Minister Charupong Ruangsuwan said yesterday that his predecessor, Yongyuth Wichaidit, had agreed to become his chief adviser. He said Yongyuth finally agreed after being approached by Charupong three times.
Charupong said he would start work at the Interior Ministry at around 8am today, after handing over the job of transport minister, which he held in the previous Cabinet, to successor Chatchart Sithipan at about 7am.
