December 25, 2025 looms for 44 ex-Move Forward MPs as NACC weighs Section 112 case

The group includes several high-profile figures who later moved to the People’s Party, including party leader and prime ministerial candidate Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, prime ministerial candidate and economic figure Sirikanya Tansakun, and other prominent MPs such as Rangsiman Rome, Wayo Assavarungruang, Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn, Surachet Pravinvongvuth, Pakornwut Udompipatskul, Nattawut Buapratum, Woraphop Viriyaroj, and Kampong Tepakam.

The date is significant for another reason: the People’s Party, one of the three main blocs currently jostling for power, is also scheduled to unveil its core policy platform after already naming three prime ministerial candidates — Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, Sirikanya Tansakun, and Veerayooth Kanchoochat, the party’s key policy architect.

On December 19, the party also introduced four figures it described as potential deputy prime ministers if it wins and forms a single-party government: Phicharn Chaowapatanawong (democracy and “new security”), Dejarat Sukgumnerd (quality of life), Veerayooth Kanchoochat (economy), and Sirikanya Tansakun (state and public administration reform), under a campaign framed around “3 Thais”: “Thailand not grey, Thailand equal, Thailand future-ready”.

The case: a revived legal front after Move Forward’s dissolution

The NACC case has been under investigation for almost a year, following the Constitutional Court’s unanimous ruling to dissolve the Move Forward Party. The court found that Move Forward’s campaign and continued push to amend Section 112 amounted to an exercise of rights and freedoms aimed at undermining Thailand’s constitutional order under Section 49 of the constitution.

The draft bill at the centre of the NACC inquiry was filed in 2021 during the Move Forward era, when Pita Limjaroenrat was party leader and Chaithawat Tulathon served as secretary-general, backed by 44 MPs.

According to the account, investigators have treated the 44 MPs as falling into three broad behaviour groups: those who were seen as the originators of the bill’s concept; those accused of organising and mobilising signatures; and MPs who co-signed the draft — with the allegation that they used their positions in a way that brought damage or disrepute under the ethical standards regime.

What happens if the NACC indicts

If the NACC votes to indict and the case is forwarded to the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions, the political impact will depend on what the court does next.

Under the scenario laid out in the report, even if the Supreme Court accepts the case, the accused would still be able to remain politically active and stand for election — because parliament has already been dissolved and all MPs have lost their seats. In other words, acceptance of the case would not automatically prevent candidacies.

However, the risk is on the back end. If the court later rules against them, it could lead to removal from office for anyone who has returned to parliament and potentially bring political bans, while also forcing the party to reshuffle its leadership structure.

Candidate reshuffles to reduce risk

The report says the People’s Party has already planned for this uncertainty and has made candidate placements with legal exposure in mind — effectively trying to reduce disruption if court outcomes later cut away some front-line figures.

It notes that 25 of the original 44 later joined the People’s Party, including 17 party-list MPs and eight constituency MPs. Among those named as constituency MPs in the group are Taopiphop Limjittrakorn, Nattacha Boonchaiinsawat, Teerajchai Phunthumas, Yanathicha Buapuean, and Jirat Thongsuwan.

The party is described as shifting some figures previously elected in constituencies onto the party-list track, while adjusting constituency slates in multiple areas — including cases where relatives were put forward as replacements. One example cited is Jirat Thongsuwan, who was convicted and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment without suspension in a separate case; the report says his wife Praewanphat Thongsuwan was selected to run in his place. It also says Pairoj Buapuean was put forward to replace Yanathicha Buapuean.

A looming strategic problem for the People’s Party

The report argues that even if the “44 MPs case” does not immediately block election plans, it could still create a major strategic headache later.

If court judgments go against a number of leading figures who decide to continue with the People’s Party, the party’s prime ministerial bench could shrink sharply. The report suggests that, in such a scenario, the party could be left with only Veerayooth Kanchoochat as its remaining prime ministerial candidate, raising questions about whether that would be enough to pursue its goal of forming a single-party government.

The report concludes that the NACC’s expected move on December 25 may not be the final word — suggesting the decision could slip into January 2026, but still likely to land before election day — and that the political stakes for the “orange” leadership remain high as the case tightens around some of the bloc’s best-known names.