Paetongtarn’s 37th birthday marked with love and tuk-tuks on Sunday
Paetongtarn “Ing” Shinawatra’s 37th birthday on Sunday was marked with tuk-tuks driving around the city with “happy birthday” posters tacked to their rear.
Photos of Paetongtarn celebrating her birthday with Pheu Thai’s former secretary-general Phumtham Wechayachai and party’s deputy leader/legal adviser Choosak Sirinin were also posted on the “Ing Shinawatra” Facebook page.
Paetongtarn, former PM Thaksin Shinawatra’s youngest daughter, was recently appointed director of the “Pheu Thai Family”.
More than 700 Facebook users posted comments on the Facebook page, with many voicing support for her as Pheu Thai’s PM candidate. They believe as PM, she can lift corruption charges faced by her father and aunt, former PM Yingluck Shinawatra, and allow them to return home freely.
Paetongtarn responded to her fans by saying “thanks for all your love” under a montage clip of a fleet of tuk-tuks driving around Bangkok.
This birthday celebration added colour to Thailand’s political scene this week, as all sides are waiting to see how the Constitutional Court responds to claims that Prayut Chan-o-cha’s tenure as PM expires on Wednesday.
Article 158 of the Constitution states that a prime minister shall not hold office for more than eight years in total, whether or not consecutively. However, the start date of Prayut’s eight-year tenure is being disputed.
Many people insist the eight-year term started when Prayut first assumed premiership on August 24, 2014 – following the military coup he led in May that year.
Others say his tenure began when the current Constitution came into force on April 6, 2017. A third group believes it should be counted from when Prayut assumed the premiership on June 9, 2019, following the general election in March that year.
