Yingluck Voted Thailand's First Woman Leader

Yingluck Shinawatra was on Friday voted as Thailand's first woman prime minister.   A total of 296 MPs of a ruling Puea Thai Party and other coalition partners voted in support of the 44-year-old woman leader, compared to 197 MPs of the opposition parties who abstained and three others who voted against her. Ms Yingluck is the youngest sister of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, said to have remained very instrumental in the making of the country's first woman leader. Sarcastically called a 'clone' of the deposed premier, the head of a post-election government maintained she is invariably capable of making decisions of her own. The 28th prime minister is yet to set up her cabinet mostly consisting of those who ran on a Puea Thai party list in Jul 3's electoral contests. The reported behind-the-scenes roles of her globetrotting brother notwithstanding, Ms Yingluck repeatedly said her cabinet is being lined up 'right here in Thailand, and not there in Dubai.'  She referred to the capital of the United Arab Emirates, in which Mr Thaksin is known to reside. Tipped to be named members of a Yingluck cabinet are, among others, members of her Puea Thai Party, either elected or non-elected, including: Yongyudh Wichaidit, a former undersecretary of the Interior Ministry. Pol Gen Pracha Promnok, a former police chief. Plodprasop Suratsawadi, a former forestry department chief. Suchart Tadatamrongvet, a former finance minister. Charupong Ruangsuwan, a former undersecretary of the Justice Ministry. Bantoon Supakavanit, a former head of the Budget Bureau. Viroon Techapaibul, a former deputy commerce minister. Nivattamrong Boonsongpaisal, a former chief executive of ITV. Wattana Muangsook, a former member of cabinet. Gen Yudhasak Sasiprapa, a former deputy defense minister. Kanawat Wasinsangworn, a former assistant to the Minister of Information & Communication Technology. Torpong Chaiyasan, a former chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Relations. ACM Sumet Bhomanee, a former head of the Air Force Security Command.  Pichai Nariptapand, a former deputy finance minister. Others from a few coalition partners speculated to be given portfolios in the Yingluck cabinet are Chumpol Silpa-acha, a former tourism & sports minister, and Pradit Patraprasit, a former deputy finance minister, both of the Chat Thai Pattana Party, Wannarat Channukul, a former energy minister, of the Chat Pattana Puea Pandin Party, and Sukumon Kunpluem of the Palang Chon Party.   Source : AFP : (Image)