DESPITE BEING “disowned” by the Democrat Party, Bangkok Governor MR Paribatra Sukhumbhand yesterday denied rumours that he wanted to quit the party so he could create a new one with former party secretary-general Suthep Thaugsuban.

Speaking at the Thai-Japanese Youth Centre, Sukhumbhand maintained he would not quit theDemocrat Party and denied discussions on the topic with Suthep. He also refused to respond to the party’s recent announcement that it was disowning him, saying he would now have to be responsible for his own actions.

The party has distanced itself from Sukhumbhand, claiming that he failed to be accountable when he refused to respond to several allegations levelled against him. Sukhumbhand has been embroiled in several scandals and alleged irregularities in connection with city administration projects.

Sukhumbhand, however, insists that he will remain Bangkok governor until his term is completed in about a year.

Meanwhile, polls showed that Sukhumbhand’s ratings have been plummeting during his two years and nine months in office. A January 22-25 survey involving 1,185 respondents showed that he had earned an overall score of 5.87 points out of a possible 10, an overall decline of 0.35 points since the previous survey.

Asked if they would vote for Sukhumbhand in the next gubernatorial elections, 30 per cent of respondents said they would not, 27 per cent said they would and 42 per cent said they were not sure.

Of the total respondents, 25 per cent said the governor had shown no outstanding achievements, 58 per cent believed he had demonstrated some achievements and 9 per cent said they had seen concrete results.

His job-approval rating, however, has dropped in every aspect from turning Bangkok into a “green city” to making the capital more convenient for residents. The score ranking his devotion to work was the highest returned at 5.62, while he got the lowest score of 5.06 points on addressing grievances. His score on honesty fell the most, by 1.04 points, followed by his implementation of policies with a decline of 0.77, while his scores on swiftly addressing problems and innovation shared the same decline of 0.73.

Separately, Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva apologised to Bangkok residents on Saturday for his party’s failure to monitor the city administration’s work. The following day, Abhisit went toSamui at Suthep’s invitation to help raise funds to build a college.

Suthep, chairman of the Great Mass of People’s Foundation for Thailand’s Reforms, dismissed speculation that he would form a new political party with Sukhumbhand.

“I will not rejoin the Democrat Party. I will not set up a new party to compete with the Democrats,” he said.

He also denied inviting Abhisit and Sukhumbhand to Samui to help bridge the divide between the governor and the party, saying he would not meddle in his old party’s internal affairs.

“The Democrats have to deal with the issue. It’s none of my business.

“I have left the party and it’s not fair if I comment about it,” he said.