Former Democrat Party MP and ex-protest leader, Sakoltee Phattiyakul, has been named deputy Bangkok governor in a move interpreted by a key Democrat figure as government interference in local administration, a source said.
The source said Mr Sakoltee, 40, was appointed Wednesday by Bangkok governor, Aswin Kwanmuang, replacing Pol Gen Chinthat Meesuk. The governor also removed Suppapong Krissanapan and Yutthapan Meechai as his advisers and Sophon Pisutthiwong as assistant secretary to the governor.
Pol Lt Gen Sophon and Pol Gen Chinthat will fill the two vacant advisory roles. Serving as the new assistant secretary to the governor will be Somsak Chartsuksiridet, a former chief of Laksi district, which Mr Sakoltee formerly represented as an MP. Mr Sakoltee met Pol Gen Aswin on Tuesday, the day before his official appointment, for a briefing on his new role, the source said.
Mr Sakoltee's appointment followed a reported meeting he had with Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak at Government House on April 3. Other former Democrat MPs present at the meeting were Natthapol Theepsuwan and Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, said the source, adding both politicians denied Mr Somkid used the meeting to discuss setting up a military-backed political party to support Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha staying on as premier after the election.
The meeting, they said, dealt with matters related to the government's flagship Eastern Economic Corridor project. The source said Mr Sakoltee's acceptance of the deputy governor post surprised many as he had validated his Democrat membership, a compulsory step for maintaining political party status on April 1, the first day of membership validation. The former MP has since quit the Democrats to take up his new role at City Hall.
According to the source, Pol Gen Aswin's son, Pongsakorn Kwanmuang, may stand as the Democrat candidate in Laksi at the next general election. The source said Pol Gen Aswin himself may not contest the next gubernatorial election under the Democrat ticket but under a military-backed party banner instead.
Pol Gen Chinthat, meanwhile, denied the changes at City Hall were motivated by any conflict. He insisted he and Pol Gen Aswin were on good terms. Another source said Mr Sakoltee admitted he was approached by a senior figure in the government to serve as deputy governor.
Mr Sakoltee said he saw his new job as a chance to gain experience running city affairs. He declined to say what party he was contemplating joining in the future, the source said. Mr Sakoltee was one of the leaders of the now-dissolved People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), charged with joining a political gathering of more than 10 people in violation of the emergency decree under the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
Democrat deputy leader, Nipit Intharasombat, said he believed Mr Sakoltee's meeting with Mr Somkid led to him land the deputy governor role. That shows the government may have interfered in the running of City Hall, he said.
Below: Mr Sakoltee (white shirt, foreground) leads a protest in April, 2014, from atop the Bangkok Shutdown sound truck.
