Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra will kick-start a new round of mobile cabinet meetings in Surat Thani Sunday in a move seen as a fresh bid by the Pheu Thai Party to attack the Democrats' political stronghold in southern provinces.
On the agenda is the cabinet's approval of an 18.5 billion baht budget for development projects in the provinces.
The cabinet meeting in Surat Thani, home of Democrat MP Suthep Thaugsuban, is Pheu Thai's second in the Democrat stronghold.
In March, the cabinet met in Phuket where it approved funds of up to 84 billion baht for island residents and those living in provinces along the Andaman Sea.
Ms Yingluck flew to Ko Tao off the Surat Thani coast yesterday afternoon where she received a warm welcome. Residents, members of the Thai Women's Empowerment Fund and a group of elderly people greeted her with smiles when she visited Ko Tao Health Promotion Hospital.
The hospital provides mainly primary care, but after the cabinet meeting, Ko Tao residents will have a new hospital with better medical facilities costing 50 million baht.
The construction of a new hospital is part of many development projects costing 176 million baht for Surat Thani people.
Also set to be approved by the cabinet are plans to prevent flooding at Wat Phra Borommathat Chaiya Ratchaworawihan, the most respected temple in the province, and Chaweng resort beach as well as the construction of artesian wells to handle drought on the resort island of Koh Samui.
The solution to drought on Koh Samui is supported by Democrat leader and former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva who notes the island needs additional water supplies and better infrastructure to serve the high number of tourists.
Asked by reporters yesterday how she felt to step onto Mr Suthep's turf, Ms Yingluck said: "The PM must go everywhere to spend funds for development."
The premier said she plans to find time to visit the southern provinces more often.
She said such visits helped her and other officials learn what local people wanted and to determine the budgets needed for the development of various provinces.
Yet, despite the benefits of the projects for the residents of Surat Thani, political observers compare Ms Yingluck's mobile cabinet meeting with a similar political tactic by her elder brother and Pheu Thai de facto leader Thaksin Shinawatra.
The former prime minister held cabinet meetings in many provinces when he was in power.
Though many items on the agenda could be tabled in Government House in Bangkok, he decided to go upcountry to visit and get near local people.
The move was viewed as successful "political marketing" as it fortified the image of his "Santa Claus" government among mostly rural people, especially in the Northeast.
There have been no protests from Democrat supporters or government opponents at any of the venues Ms Yingluck and her entourage went to yesterday.
Mr Abhisit said he was not worried about Ms Yingluck's visit to the South. He only wants the government to serve all people because "there have never been areas that belong to certain political parties".
He earlier told Democrat supporters not to disrupt the government's work and, after talking to Mr Suthep, the Democrat heavyweight also insisted there would be no problems during the premier's trip.
The Yingluck government has so far held seven mobile cabinet meetings in the one year and two months since it took over the reins of power from the Democrats.