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BANGKOK - Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej awaits a court verdict on accusations that his TV cooking show violated the constitution, which could see him forced from office, at least temporarily.
Thailand's Constitutional Court is set to decide later Tuesday whether Samak violated the constitution by taking money from a private company to host the "Tasting and Grumbling" cooking show.
If found guilty, he and his Cabinet would be forced to resign -- something that protesters occupying the grounds of his offices have not been able to achieve since storming his Government House two weeks ago.
However, Samak would not be barred from holding office, and his deputy has already held out the possibility that the ruling coalition could simply vote him back as prime minister.
"Ready or not ready, we must wait and see," Samak told reporters as he toured a market in northeastern Udon Thani province, where he was preparing to hold a Cabinet meeting.
With 5,000 protesters squatting on the grounds of his now-empty offices for two weeks, Samak has been forced to find new venues for his Cabinet meetings and other official business.
Samak declared a state of emergency in Bangkok last week after the protesters clashed with his supporters in the streets, leaving one person dead and dozens injured.
The protesters want Samak to resign, accusing him of acting as a puppet for former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by the military in 2006 on the heels of demonstrations by the same group of activists.
But Samak's deputy Surapong Suebwonglee told reporters that even if the court decides against the premier, the decision would not necessarily end his rule.
The ruling six-party coalition headed by Samak's People Power Party (PPP) could vote for him to return as prime minister even if he is forced out by the Constitutional Court, Surapong said.
"We have not yet discussed this issue among PPP members because the party has not held a general meeting yet. But it's possible and allowed by law," he said.
That would likely mean a continuation of the crisis, which has pummelled the Thai stock market, sending it down nearly 24 per cent since the first anti-government protests began in late May.
The protesters, who call themselves the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), are pushing a broader agenda than just Samak's resignation.
They want to curtail Thailand's democracy so that only 30 per cent of seats in parliament would be elected, which they say would restrict the influence of poor rural voters in places like Udon Thani, who have widely supported Samak.
PAD supporters say the change would ensure that Samak's allies cannot return to power.
"We're going to get them all out. They have to improve their morals," said Permpoon Kanchanastit, 66, a retired physician's assistant who flew from her home in California to join the protest.
- AFP/ir
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