Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej swears in new cabinet

Aug 10, 2011, 13:24 GMT

Bangkok - King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Wednesday swore in Thailand's new cabinet, to be led by Yingluck Shinawatra, 44, the kingdom's first female prime minister.

Yingluck, the youngest sister of fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, was endorsed as prime minister by King Bhumibol, 83, in a separate ceremony on Monday.

The entire cabinet was sworn in Wednesday evening in front of the king, who is head of state under Thailand's system of constitutional monarchy, at the Siriraj Hospital, where Bhumibol has been undergoing treatment for almost two years.

'At the moment the world has many difficulties, which make Thialand's problems look small,' the king said, urging the new cabinet to work to stabilize the country.

The new cabinet lineup won some praise from Thailand's business community, as it includes two technocrats in the crucial posts of finance and commerce.

Thirachai Phuvanatnaranubala, the former secretary general of the Securities and Exchange Commission, is the new finance minister, while former central bank economist Kittirat na Ranong is the commerce minister.

Thailand faces serious economic challenges in the wake of the US debt downgrade. A slowdown in the US economy, now expected, could lead to reduced Thai exports, the country's chief engine of growth.

The kingdom also faces rising inflation, which may be worsened by the populist policies Yingluck's Pheu Thai party promised the public in order to win the July 3 general election.

Thailand's business community has expressed concerns about Pheu Thai's promise to raise the minimum daily wage to 300 baht (10 dollars), representing an average hike of 70 per cent nationwide.

Other proposed policies include: raising the entry wage for college graduates to 15,000 baht a month; giving away 800,000 computer tablets to first graders nationwide; and paying farmers 15,000 baht per ton of rice they grow, regardless of world prices.

Another challenge for Yingluck will be handling public relations for her older brother, former telecommunications tycoon Thaksin, who was prime minister between 2001 and 2006.

Thaksin has been living in Dubai to avoid a two-year jail term on an abuse of power conviction.

He has expressed a desire to be given an amnesty so he can return to Thailand soon, but this is likely to be strongly opposed by Thaksin's many political foes, including senior members of the kingdom's elite.

Although living abroad to avoid prison, Thaksin is still deemed the de facto leader and chief financier of the Pheu Thai party, which won 265 of the 500 contested seats in last month's polls.