A coalition of Thai pro-democracy parties settled a dispute over the powerful parliament speaker’s position, edging closer to forming a new government as the parliament met for the first time after the May election.
Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, 79, a former speaker and leader of the Prachachat Party, was chosen as consensus candidate for the speaker’s job after Move Forward and Pheu Thai, the largest parties in the coalition, wrangled over the issue for weeks. The stage is now set for the first sitting of the 500-member lower chamber on Tuesday, where lawmakers are scheduled to elect the speaker and two deputies.
