Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha is accused of "siphoning" ex-members of parliament from various political parties into a party of his own that is currently setting up, rumoured to be the Palang Pracharat Party.
The party, of course, will support Gen Prayut as prime minister after the election next year. In such an endeavour, it is likely Gen Prayut will be on the shortlist nominated by the party, making him an "insider" candidate, not an "outsider" waiting in the wings to assume the top job. He then can claim that he is, in essence, "democratically" elected.
Suranand Vejjajiva was secretary-general to the prime minister during the Yingluck Shinawatra government and is now a political analyst.
But before the end of the day, the party needs the necessary number of votes in parliament to win the premiership. And a new political party without any political infrastructure will require special growth hormones to build up MPs. Thus, the "siphoning" process.
This is done in two ways. One is to entice alliances with smaller parties. The most prominent one so far is the Khunplome family's Palang Chon Party from Chonburi province. Veteran politician Sonthaya Khunplome became the PM's adviser, while his younger brother Ittipol, former mayor of Pattaya, became a vice minister. Palang Chon should be able to deliver six or seven MPs from the area.
In addition, Mr Sonthaya is closely linked to former members of the "Group of 16" who were once the Young Turks of Thai politics. They include veteran politicians Newin Chidchob of Buri Ram and Sora-at Klinpratum of Ratchaburi, both now are with Bhumjaithai Party under leader Anutin Charnvirakul, the Sino-Thai Construction big boss.
The large crowd of 30,000 expected in Buri Ram to greet Gen Prayut next week is no surprise. Bhumjaithai is a medium-sized party aiming for at least 35-40 MPs.
The other route is to directly recruit political factions to run under the party's banner. Gen Prayut went golfing with senior members of the Sasomsap family of Nakhon Pathom, even though it is widely known the family has very close ties to ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The Sasomsap family members have not reconfirmed their Pheu Thai Party membership, leaving the option open for them to join another party.
The latest to join Gen Prayut's side is the Adireksarn family of Saraburi -- with ex-Thai Rak Thai veteran politician Pongpol Adireksarn and his son Porapol.
Stories are surfacing of approaches by the apparatus of the National Council for Peace and Order (NPCO) and some members of the current cabinet towards politicians at the local and national levels. Some are asked nicely, some with coercion. Some are given hints of financial support, and some are outright blackmailed with, for example, charges that their businesses are not entirely legal. No actual confirmation, of course, but senior politicians from both Pheu Thai and the Democrat Party are grumbling about it.
Democrat Leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said "they are going to tell you that if you remain here, no one will give you financial support. If you support them, they will take better care of you". "They" meaning "people in government", according to Mr Abhisit. Prayut Siripanich of Pheu Thai has said some MPs were offered amnesty from cases of wrongdoings in the past -- in exchange for a change of heart.
The NCPO "takes a neutral stance" Gen Prayut insists. "All we are doing is preparing the groundwork for the election. That's our duty." The NCPO should not be singled out for "shopping" for MPs since this practice has long existed. Being "sucked" into another party is a "norm" in a democracy.
In Thai political history, "siphoning" politicians and MPs is the norm both in democratic and authoritarian governments seeking political legitimacy. The tactics are not exactly the same and the end results could be totally different.
For instance, Thaksin was accused of enticing politicians and MPs from other parties into his Thai Rak Thai Party. The end result was an absolute majority in parliament after winning the election of 2005. But looking back to the first election that Thai Rak Thai won in 2001, no one, Thaksin included, thought they would grab 248 out of the 500 MP seats. More than a hundred new faces known as nok lae came through.
The contributing factor was Thaksin's strategy in presenting a strong platform of ideas to change the nation. The voters wanted change and gave their consent via the ballot box. The momentum increased as campaign promises turned into actual policies and concrete implementation when Thaksin assumed office.
Thai Rak Thai and Thaksin's popularity forced other politicians to join the bandwagon. It was their constituencies which told them if they did not run under the banner, they would miss the train. These factions certainly negotiated for benefits -- financing of their campaign ventures or the spoils after the election -- but Thaksin always had the upper hand, not because of his money, but because of pressure from voters.
This was not the case for the leaders of the coup d'etat of 1991, led by Gen Sunthorn Kongsompong and the members of Class 5 of the Royal Military Academy, which had Gen Suchinda Kraprayoon as chairman. When they decided to extend their rule, the Samakki Tham Party (Justice Unity Party) was formed to muster support for Gen Suchida to become prime minister in 1992.
Political factions of all sorts were rounded up. Veteran politicians close to the National Peace Keeping Council played the numbers game with the military. They came in first in the election and led the formation of the government.
But they misjudged public opinion. The urban middle class of Bangkok was caught in the globalisation uptrend and the apparent triumph of liberal democracy over communism with the fall of Berlin Wall in 1989. The broken vow of Gen Suchinda that he would not become a prime minister angered Bangkokians.
Led by Maj Gen Chamlong Srimuang, the popular ex-Bangkok governor, who joined forces with military man-turned-politician Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh and his northeastern based New Aspiration Party, together with members of Class 7 of the Royal Military Academy from which Chamlong graduated. The democratic alliance organised street protests which turned into a bloody crackdown and led to the fall of Gen Suchinda -- after being premier for a total of only 47 days.
Gen Prayut should take heed. Politicians change colours and their encirclement is always temporary. But manipulation of the people's rights and liberties can be seen through. And when the tipping point is reached, the fate of Gen Prayut could be sealed just as was that of Gen Suchinda.