Thai parliament to meet again on choosing PM on Aug 4

BANGKOK: Thailand's parliament is scheduled to sit on Aug. 4 to try again to pick a prime minister, it said on Thursday, as a political stalemate drags on following a national election in May.

Two previous attempts by the election-winning Move Forward party to have its leader Pita Limjaroenrat endorsed as premier have been blocked by conservative and military-nominated lawmakers.

The Pheu Thai party, which came second in May and is part of an eight-party alliance with Move Forward, is expected to make the next bid for the prime ministership.

Voters in Southeast Asia's second largest economy propelled Move Forward to a surprise election victory over military-backed rivals who have dominated its politics for most of the last decade.

But the military-nominated Senate and opponents from the conservative, royalist establishment have pushed back against Pita, stalling his attempts to become prime minister.

A parliamentary document outlining its agenda for Aug. 4 said the house would "consider and endorse a suitable individual to become prime minister."

However, the vote could be delayed because of a pending court review of a previous decision, house speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha told reporters in parliament before the agenda was released.

Thailand's Constitutional Court is due to review next Thursday a petition over a decision earlier this month to block Pita's candidacy for the top job.

If the court accepts the petition, the following day's parliamentary vote would be postponed, Wan Noor said.