Palang Pracharath Party leader (PPRP) Prawit Wongsuwon distanced himself from an internal popularity poll, which reportedly showed the popularity of some MPs in the South had declined.
Gen Prawit said while he planned to conduct a survey ahead of the general election to see how the party would fare, he had nothing to do with the latest one that was reportedly carried out by a faction led by party secretary-general Thamanat Prompow.
When asked if the survey was conducted to assess the MP's performance, Gen Prawit said he saw no point in conducting such a poll as elections were not taking place anytime soon.
Gen Prawit said any questions regarding the poll should be directed at the person responsible.
"Who did? I didn't order that and who would do it?" Gen Prawit said when he was prodded about media reports suggesting that Capt Thamanat was behind the poll.
On Sunday, Capt Thamanat said the internal survey was Gen Prawit's initiative aimed to assess the MPs' performance and potential MP candidates' popularity and allow the party to know its strengths and weaknesses.
Last Friday PPRP deputy leader Wirach Ratanasate admitted the internal poll was being carried out to gauge the popularity of MPs but the results were not yet available.
According to a PPRP source, the poll results indicated that the party MPs in the South and Bangkok were elected largely because of the popularity of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, as opposed to their counterparts in the North and Northeast who were elected due to other factors rather than relying solely on Gen Prayut's popularity.