Somsak Prisanananthakul, a key party adviser, said it would be a challenging task to keep existing party members after Banharn, the country’s 21st premier, died on Saturday.

For years, party members have been held together by Banharn, said Somsak, a former minister and confidant of the late premier.

“Without him, Chart Thai Pattana is like a rudderless ship,” he said.

Some of Chart Thai Pattana’s members are expected to move to other parties, but Somsak said he would try to convince members to stay.

“We’ll try to chart a new path for this party with an ideology so that members will stay together because of that reason, not because of a charismatic person,” said Somsak, adding that he expected the party to continue its mission as initiated by Banharn.

However, academic Sukhum Nuansakul said the party would find it difficult to keep members based on ideology. Sukhum, a former rector at Ramkhamhaeng University, said the party’s ideology was weak and it would be difficult for anyone to fill the vacuum left by the party leader’s death.

Memorial events in Suphan Buri

He believed it would also be a challenge for the party to cope with the current political upheaval.

People in Suphan Buri – Banharn’s home province and political strong-hold – expressed their condolences and mourned the revered politician’s death.

Suphan Buri residents organised events at four locations to mark his passing and to write memorial messages, including Suphan Buri’s City Pillar Shrine, Bung Chawak Aquarium, Chaloem Phatthara Rachini Park and the Banharn Hall of Fame.

For decades, Banharn contributed massively to the central province, including during the heyday of his career that led to the premiership in 1995. Banharn, who started his career in politics in the 1970s, was also credited for helping to usher in Thailand’s 1997 Constitution, dubbed the “people’s charter” and the country’s most democratic, which led to a wide range of national reforms.