Karun sparks boycott in friendly football match

Karun, a People Power MP from Bangkok, described the opposition MPs as narrow-minded and failed to separate politics from sport.

However, the Democrats explained that the government side had broken their promise of not letting Karun to join the match.

Karun was earlier involved in a dispute with Democrat MP Somkiat Pongpaiboon, who accused him of physical assault and verbal abuse during a break at a Parliament canteen. A House investigative team concluded that Karun did commit physical and verbal assaults.

The football match between Democrat MPs and senators on one side and coalition party MPs, mostly from the PPP, on the other side began at 4 pm at the Army Stadium. It was part of a sport festival among parliamentarians.

Just before half time, Karun went into the field, prompting Democrat players to stop and walk out. Some PPP players came to ask their opponents about the reason. It was then that the referee blew the whistle to end the first half.

In the second half, some PPP players changed their jerseys to join the opposition-senator team. Democrat players began walking out again. The result was 9-4 in the government's favour.

Karun got loud cheers from his supporters during the match. And he showed to them an "I love you" symbol in sign language.

In the locker room, he also challenged the opposition to begin its impeachment proceedings against him, according to a Democrat source.

The Nation