BANGKOK:Thai politics turned a new page on Friday (Aug 16) when Pheu Thai Party leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra became the 31st prime minister of Thailand, as well as the youngest Thai PM at age 37 and the second woman PM in the country after her aunt Yingluck Shinawatra (2011-2014).
Hailing from a family of business tycoons and politicians, Paetongtarn is the youngest daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra (2001-2006), who is seen as the de facto leader of the ruling Pheu Thai Party.
Paetongtarn, nicknamed Ung Ing, is married to Pitaka Suksawat. The couple has two children – a daughter and a son.
Pitaka, 42, was born in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat and graduated with a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from the King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Ladkrabang in Bangkok.
Pitaka and Paetongtarn were introduced to each other by Khanapoj Joemrith, who is Pitaka’s cousin and a close friend of Paetongtarn. Khanapoj was previously the director of the now-defunct Thai Raksa Chart Party.
After dating for two years, the couple decided to tie the knot on March 17, 2019.
Pitaka worked as a pilot with a commercial airline before switching to real-estate business as vice president of investment at Rende Development Co Ltd. He was also on the committee of Thaicom Foundation before taking on the role of helping his wife in her business and political endeavours. - The Nation/ANN
