The Sang Anakhot Thai (Building Thailand's Future) Party will unveil its candidate for prime minister once the bill on the election of MPs is enacted into law, party leader Uttama Savanayana said on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference to spell out the party's plans to reshape the future of Thailand, Mr Uttama said its candidate must have the experience to steer the country through crises.
"We still have some time. The prime ministerial candidate will be announced after the election bill becomes law," Mr Uttama said.
He said the party is also ready to send potential election candidates nationwide to meet people ahead of the next election expected to take place towards the middle of next year after the government's tenure expires in March.
Sontirat Sontijirawong, the party's secretary-general, previously said former deputy prime minister Somkid Jatusripitak had accepted an invitation to be named as the party's choice of prime minister.
Mr Sontirat said the party would wait for the right time to officially declare Mr Somkid as its candidate for prime minister.
At Sunday's media event, Mr Uttama said the party is seeking to "reset" Thailand.
The steps it proposes to achieve this include tackling corruption, cracking down on drug trafficking, creating equality by reducing monopolies and increasing competition, downsizing bureaucracy and modernising the agricultural sector.
Other tasks involve strengthening the grassroots economy, developing infrastructure and promoting constructive politics, Mr Uttama said.
He said the most pressing problems caused by the pandemic -- the debt crisis and high cost of living -- must be dealt with urgently while the party is also looking to set up a 300-billion-baht fund for building the future of the country.
He said the fund will not come from a loan and will not be a financial burden.
Of the amount, 100 billion baht will be earmarked to help ease people's debt problems and the rest spent on rehabilitating the grassroots economy, Mr Uttama said.
Deputy Sang Anakhot Thai leader Santi Kiranant fleshed out the fund project, saying the government has an annual budget of about 3 trillion baht for spending.
Of the amount, 600 billion baht is set aside for investment spending.
"More than half of the 600-billion-baht sum or about 400 billion baht is set aside for spending projects that are not urgent such as national defence or domestic peacekeeping.
"Therefore, the 400 billion baht can be reallocated to help ease people's most pressing problems.
"If our party goes into government, our leader will begin the task of implementing this project straight away," Mr Santi said.
Mr Sontirat said on Sunday the party is prepared for any political situation that may arise.
"We are ready [for the poll] even if the House of Representatives is dissolved right now," he said.
At the party's general assembly on April 20, Mr Uttama, a former finance minister, was elected leader while Mr Sontirat, a former energy minister, was named secretary-general.
The former leader and secretary-general of the Palang Pracharath Party, respectively, resigned from the ruling party and the cabinet in 2020 due to an internal conflict.
Mr Somkid, who was deputy prime minister at the time, also stepped down from the government, citing health problems.