Thailand's group seeks permission from ruling NCPO to hold first meeting

BANGKOK, April 9 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's "Future Forward Party", a popular group of people applying to be a political party to attend the next general election, called on the ruling National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) on Monday to grant permission for its first meeting next month.

The group is headed by business tycoon Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit. In a statement issued on Monday, the "Future Forward Party" called on the NCPO, headed by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, to allow it to convene its first meeting on May 27.

The Thai government opened registration for new political parities in March. The existing ones are managing to have their respective members nationwide to reconfirm their party memberships within this month.

Some 98 groups applied to be registered as new political parties while Thanathorn's "Future Forward Party" gained most attention from Thai media and netizens.

The group suggested the NCPO to grant its permission, otherwise, it said, a future general election would otherwise be organized as a "token contest" merely to endorse the alleged bid of the ruling NCPO to prolong its rule.

The first meeting of the group is primarily designed to make preparations for their campaigns for the general election expected in February 2019, according to the party's statement.

The NCPO said it was leading Thailand back to civilian rule under its "roadmap", which would see a general election in February 2019. Enditem