Thailand's Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra still hopes that former opposition parties will join the snap election set on April 2, saying they are welcome to register their constituency-based candidates for the early poll until March 8.

Speaking to the media before the cabinet's weekly meeting at the Government House on Tuesday morning, Thaksin said he planned to travel this evening to Suphan Buri province to meet with Prapat Photisuthon, secretary-general of the Chart Thai Party.

"I'll meet the secretary-general of the Chart Thai Party after launching an election campaign for Thai Rak Thai (TRT) Party candidates in the province, in which I'll also tell people in Suphanburi to persuade the Chart Thai Party's leaders to change their minds -- not to boycott the snap election -- and to, instead, send candidates to run for the early general election," said the caretaker premier.

The caretaker premier also reportedly tried to meet Sanan Khachornprasart, the leader of the Mahachon Party, at a golf course in Nonthaburi Province on the outskirts of Bangkok Tuesday evening.

Mahachon Party, Chart Thai Party and Democrat Party, recently agreed to boycott the snap election after Thaksin, as the leader of the TRT Party, called for a House dissolution on February 24. The opposition parties now call for the caretaker premier to resign, but say that their move is independent from that of anti- Thaksin groups led by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), which have continued their rallies in Bangkok to press for Thaksin 's resignation.

Source: Xinhua