Supporters have called on the Pheu Thai Party to pursue a quick formation of the new government it is set to lead and discard the commitment it has made with seven other parties to build a coalition government together.
A group of red-shirt supporters calling themselves the Media Alliance for Democracy arrived at the Pheu Thai headquarters on Tuesday to offer moral support as the party struggles to assemble a new government.
Pheu Thai has taken the leading role after the Move Forward Party (MFP), which emerged as the biggest party at the May 14 election, failed to do so. MFP leader Pita Limjaroenrat has been unable to win enough Senate votes to become prime minister.
The group, led by Chatchawal Kanchanahut and Jutipong Phummul, released a statement on Tuesday, saying the ongoing administrative vacuum is damaging the economy and counter-productive to solving national problems.
The country cannot afford to wait any longer to have a new government, it said.
Some MFP supporters have suggested the selection of a new prime minister in parliament be delayed for another 10 months, by which time the Senate's term will expire, and it will not stand in the way of Mr Pita becoming the new prime minister.
However, the group insisted people were facing hardship from the soaring cost of living, which must be addressed immediately.
Issuing a five-point recommendation to Pheu Thai, the group said the party is "100%" righteous in seeking to do whatever it takes to muster sufficient support in parliament to materialise a government with no pressure from other parties.
The party has drawn flak, especially from MFP backers, for approaching parties in the previous government as potential coalition partners. They include the Palang Pracharath Party and the United Thai Nation Party, which the MFP supporters branded remnants of the dictatorship of the coup-engineer, the National Council for Peace and Order.
The group also said Pheu Thai has the right to include parties opposing amendments to the lese majeste law in the new government it is trying to create. Amendment is an issue the MFP has campaigned hard for.
The group maintained the memorandum of understanding on government coalition formation, which binds the MFP, Pheu Thai and six other parties, should be scrapped now that the MFP is no longer in charge of putting together a government.
In addition, any one of the Pheu Thai Party's prime ministerial candidates -- Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Srettha Thavisin and Chaikasem Nitisiri -- must be nominated for a vote in parliament without delay.
Most importantly, top priority must go to tackling economic problems, the group said.