Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon admitted on Tuesday that it seemed Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha would join another political party and not the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, which had engineered his elevation to prime minister.
Gen Prawit, who is the Palang Pracharath leader, was responding to continuing speculation that Gen Prayut would join the Ruam Thai Sang Chart (United Thai Nation) Party led by Pirapan Salirathavibhaga for the coming general election. Mr Pirapan is currently an adviser to the prime minister.
In response to reporters' questions, Gen Prawit said: "It would seem that the prime minister will go. He is likely to go."
Asked why he used the word "seem", Gen Prawit said Gen Prayut actually had no involvement in his Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP).
Although the PPRP nominated him and supported Gen Prayut's election as prime minister, he never was a member of the party, Gen Prawit said.
"Whether he stays or not is his business. He has not been (with the PPRP) from the start, has he?" Gen Prawit said.
Asked if PPRP would again put forward Gen Prayut as a candidate for prime minister, Gen Prawit did not give a direct answer. He said that would depend on party members and he could not answer the question because he was only one of those members.
Asked what his ties with Gen Prayut would be like if they were with different political parties, Gen Prawit said no matter where they were, their love for each other would be unchanged.