A fresh round of party hopping has begun, with the Klatham Party on the prowl for defectors and the People's Party (PP) claiming to be a primary target.
Thamanat: Close Thaksin ties
However, the PP's claim that some of its MPs were being courted with generous offers of tens of millions of baht was being taken with a pinch of salt.
Klatham has been accused of going on a "shopping spree" of late and comes across as growing stronger since breaking away from the once mighty Palang Pracharath Party.
Political experts say that up-and-coming parties tend to resort to the merger and acquisition of smaller outfits as a primary means of expanding. For such a tactic to succeed, these parties need plenty of resources at their disposal.
Klatham is reputed to be financially solid, backed by highly experienced and astute politicians, the most prominent of whom is party patriarch Capt Thamanat Prompow, who used to serve as PPRP secretary-general.
The party started out with 24 MPs, who left the PPRP following Capt Thamanat's fallout with PPRP leader Gen Prawit Wongsuwon. The painful split was reportedly marked by the PPRP leadership refusing to give the Thamanat faction a fair share of cabinet appointments in the Paetongtarn Shinawatra cabinet.
The faction left the PPRP and subsequently formed Klatham, which had the last laugh. The ruling Pheu Thai Party, which had good ties with Capt Thamanat, accepted Klatham into the cabinet and ejected the PPRP from the government.
A source close to the matter said Capt Thamanat has retained close ties with former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, Ms Paetongtarn's father, who is seen as Pheu Thai's de facto leader.
There has been talk of Klatham operating as a Pheu Thai offshoot, tasked with elevating itself to a medium-sized party ahead of the next general election in two years.
Medium-sized parties are coveted when putting together a government as they provide the coalition with a majority in parliament that is not exceedingly large. They also do not command a big slice of cabinet posts, which are typically allocated in proportion to the number of MPs they have.
Klatham has continued to welcome high-profile politicians to its ranks. Since its official registration with the Election Commission, the party has earned a reputation as a political force to watch. It even managed to win a House seat in the by-election in Nakhon Si Thammarat's Constituency 8 last month.
This election success was followed by an open pledge of allegiance to Klatham by PP MP for Chon Buri, Krit Chevathamanon, who has since quit as a member of the main opposition party.
However, upon resigning, he lost his MP status, so he has joined Klatham just as a member. Mr Krit cried foul after being sidelined by the PP and insisted he had been rebuked harshly by some fellow party MPs for undertaking developmental projects in Sri Racha district, his former constituency, which they maintained did not reflect the PP's ideology.
Quite a few PP MPs have claimed they were approached to defect to other parties with a promise of a large monthly allowance and perks.
Some analysts, however, say their claims may not hold water, reasoning that many PP MPs were elected chiefly on account of the party's immense popularity.
The analysts explained a broad swath of voters backed the Move Forward Party (MFP), as the PP was then known, because they had faith in the young party's reformist manifesto.
Also, the MFP leader at the time, Pita Limjaroenrat, was exceptionally charismatic with an unblemished political record. Mr Pita was heavily touted to be the prime minister in waiting.
The Pita factor incentivised voters to look past the inexperience of MFP candidates in some constituencies and rally behind the party, according to the source.
"Supporters were overwhelmingly gravitating to the party, trusting that a vote for its candidate, whoever that was, would give the MFP the mandate it needed to form a government that would break the status quo," the source said.
Some PP MPs were more like planets than stars; unable to radiate light on their own. Since the last election, a number of them have been accused of being aloof or neglecting to assist in livelihood improvement initiatives in their respective constituencies, the source added.
As a result, the party's prospects in the next poll may not be quite as rosy.
Meanwhile, Klatham is looking to have several options open when it comes to "fishing" in other "ponds".
The party last month rolled out the red carpet for Gp Capt Anudit Nakornthap and former Bangkok MP Karun Hosakul, both of whom had moved from Thai Sang Thai (TST) Party. Gp Capt Anudit, who held the post of TST deputy leader, looks poised to become Klatham's secretary-general.
Only days later, Deputy United Thai Nation (UTN) Party leader, Suchart Chomklin, reportedly held talks with 20 fellow MPs about their future in politics, a sign that they were about to jump ship and head straight to Klatham, according to an observer.
However, some UTN politicians claimed by Mr Suchart to be among those thinking of leaving with him have come out to deny they plan to defect.
There have also been unconfirmed reports that Mr Suchart was leaving the UTN and joining Okat Mai (New Opportunity Party).
Mr Suchart declined to say if he and the other MPs were approached by Klatham, although he admitted he retained ties with Capt Thamanat.
Credit where credit's due
Although the standoff between Thai and Cambodian troops at Chong Bok in Ubon Ratchathani has now eased, the Paetongtarn Shinawatra administration cannot take full credit for the de-escalation, according to political observers.
Paetongtarn: Talked with Hun clan
The conflict began when Cambodian soldiers intruded on disputed territory in the Chong Bok area in Nam Yuen district in April and built a base there in May, leading to a skirmish on May 28 in which a Cambodian soldier was killed.
For almost two weeks, the situation along the Thai-Cambodian border was tense.
During that time, the Thai government took a cautious approach and initially rejected the Second Army Region's retaliatory proposal to shut down the border. Phnom Penh, meanwhile, threatened to bring not only the Chong Bok issue, but also other disputed areas, including Ta Muen Thom, Ta Muen Toch and Ta Kwai in Phanom Dong Rak district of Surin, to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The government's muted response struck a nerve with its critics, who have long viewed the Shinawatra family's close relationship with Cambodia's Hun Sen with deep suspicion.
It was only last Saturday that the government let the military proceed with its plan to gradually pressure Cambodia. Thai security forces began restricting cross-border movement, and eventually, Cambodia agreed to pull its troops back to their original positions.
According to analysts, it was the military, not the government, that stepped up its game when the situation escalated.
Thanaporn Sriyakul, director of the Political and Public Policy Analysis Institute, told the Bangkok Post that the situation has reached a point where the "bleeding" must stop, in order for the next phase of border tensions to be addressed.
The military has taken the primary role in pushing back against Cambodia, lodging protests against Cambodian border incursions more than 400 times, he said. In contrast, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been widely seen as inactive during this period.
"I only hope the upcoming Joint Boundary Commission meeting [today] gives the ministry a chance to regain credibility by pushing forward on the long-stalled border demarcation process," he said.
That process has been on hold for 13 years, and many believe clarifying the boundaries could prevent similar flare-ups in the future, he said.
"It's important that the ministry brings Cambodia to the table and ensures these talks produce real results," Mr Thanaporn added.
Phichai Ratnatilaka Na Bhuket, an analyst from the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida), said the government's slow and soft response has taken its toll on its popularity.
He said the border tensions only began to de-escalate after the government gave military commanders in the area the green light to act. Despite this, Cambodia still threatens to take the issue to the ICJ.
However, Mr Phichai downplayed the threat, saying Thailand does not recognise the court's jurisdiction and will not participate in any proceedings.
"Cambodia's move amounts to 'clapping with one hand' and nothing much will come of it," he said.
Ms Paetongtarn's attempt to describe the easing of tensions as her diplomatic achievement may have come too late to convince the public and even politicians, he said.
On Tuesday, Ms Paetongtarn confirmed that she held direct talks with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and his father, Senate President and former premier Hun Sen, and secured a shared commitment to resolving the issue peacefully through dialogue.
The premier said that the government had exerted utmost efforts over the past week to de-escalate the situation by coordinating across multiple sectors, and the outcome was calm and orderly.
However, critics argued the move came after the military had already laid the groundwork for de-escalation.
According to Mr Phichai, Interior Minister and Bhumjaithai leader Anutin Charnvirakul appears to be gaining more public support in light of the border tension.
The Bhumjaithai Party leader visited the border soon after returning from overseas, offering direct support to soldiers and communities affected by the conflict, he said.
The prime minister, on the other hand, was "nowhere to be found" with rumours circulating that Pheu Thai was busy figuring out ways to seize control of the Interior Ministry.
He said the plan to remove Mr Anutin from the Interior Ministry and transfer him to the Ministry of Education -- widely seen as a demotion -- is likely to stoke a serious rift within the coalition.
According to Mr Phichai, Bhumjaithai is unlikely to tolerate such a move and Pheu Thai may not be in a position to force it without risking further coalition instability.