Thaksin remains champion for many rural Thais

By Sinfah Tunsarawuth

BANGPA-IN, Thailand (Reuters) - Two years after being ousted in a coup and having two of his political allies fired as prime minister by the courts, former leader Thaksin Shinawatra remains the champion of many Thais outside Bangkok.

"Speaking truly from my heart, I want him to come back to lead the country again," food shop owner Kasem Puapan said on Wednesday in Bangpa-In, a small industrial town 60 km (40 miles) north of Bangkok.

"If there is a new election, I will still vote for his party," she said.

Like many Thais in the countryside or small towns beyond the bright lights of the capital, she believes the economy has stagnated since Thaksin, now living in exile, was removed from office in a 2006 coup.

Kasem said her shop has recently lost half of its usual income as customers have tightened their belts.

"Now I rarely have to watch my shop. I spend more time on social activities," she said.

On Tuesday, the Constitutional Court dissolved the ruling People Power Party (PPP), the successor to Thaksin's banned Thai Rak Thai party for vote fraud in an election a year ago, and banned its top leaders, including Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, Thaksin's brother-in-law, from politics.

The latest ruling and Thaksin's graft conviction in October -- meaning he is now officially a convicted criminal on the run -- has done little to dent the telecoms billionaire's reputation as a no-nonsense leader who gets things done.