Thailand's biggest anti-junta party Pheu Thai elects new leader

[BANGKOK] The Pheu Thai Party on Friday elected Sompong Amornvivat to lead Thailand's biggest opposition party into Parliament, pledging to keep the coalition government under close scrutiny.

He was picked at a special assembly on Friday to succeed acting head Viroj Pao-in, who resigned earlier this month.

"Our important duty is to scrutinise the workings of the government," Sompong said in a comment posted on Pheu Thai's official Twitter page.

Among other key executive board positions, Anudit Nakhonthap was named as the new secretary-general, replacing Phumtham Wechayachai, according to the Pheu Thai Party's official website.

Thailand on Thursday unveiled a new list of Cabinet members which includes former officials of the outgoing junta as well as lawmakers from some of the 19 parties in the governing alliance.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha faces the challenging task of preventing fractures in the sprawling coalition and passing legislation with only a thin majority in the lower House.

Prayuth, a former army chief, seized power in a coup in 2014 after a period of unrest, and was picked to return as Premier in a joint vote of the elected lower house and junta-appointed Senate in June.

An opposition coalition that's fiercely critical of what it sees as the continuation of military rule controls almost half the lower House, increasing the odds of friction in Parliament that could weigh on the economic outlook.

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