Prime minister’s unexpected trip to Khao San Road

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha made a surprising appearance at Khao San Road on Friday, taking part in a lively water fight with enthusiastic locals and tourists.

Gen. Prayut, the United Thai Nation Party’s prime ministerial candidate, arrived at the well-known location for Songkran festivities on Friday afternoon, accompanied by key party members. Upon arrival, he engaged in a discussion about safety measures with local officials. However, it wasn’t long before the prime minister found himself under a barrage of water attacks from revellers. In response, the 69 year old PM had an aide purchase a large water gun to join in the fun.

Though his followers attempted to request that others refrain from aiming at Gen, Prayut’s face, their pleas went unheeded. As he made his way through the drenched streets of Khao San Road, several foreign tourists inquired if he was genuinely the prime minister, taking the opportunity to snap photos with him.

This marked Gen, Prayut’s first visit to Khao San Road in 15 years, and he expressed happiness and an absence of weariness during his time there. He attributed the influx of visitors to his drive to accelerate the country’s reopening in an effort to resuscitate tourism following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Additionally, Gen, Prayut highlighted the multitude of directives he had issued to officials to ensure public safety on Khaosan Road, which is consistently crowded with guests during the Songkran Festival.

Prior to his impromptu visit to Khao San Road, the Thai PM toured several Buddhist temples in Bangkok on Friday, including Wat Pichaiyat, Wat Rakhangkhositaram, and Wat Hong Rattanaram. During these visits, he made efforts to garner support and votes from the local population.