SONGKHLA: Korn Chatikavanij, leader of the Chartpattanakla Party, took part in the Singora Lake Swim 2023 and swam 2 kilometres across Songkhla Lake to promote community-based tourism – and his party – on Sunday.
Mr Korn was by Vivien Julmon, the party's policy adviser, in the swim from the Rong See Daeng pier in Muang district to the other side of the Songkhla Lake at the Hua Khao pier in Singha Nakhon district.
About 210 Thai and foreign swimmers took part in the event.
Mr Korn broke his old record of one hour by taking only 54 minutes to complete the corssing.
On hand to cheer him were four Chartpattanakla candidates who will run in four of the nine Songkhla constituencies in the next election.
Mr Korn said it was the second time he had taken part in the annual event to help promote community-based tourism and local food of Songkhla and campaign against dumping garbage into the lake.
He was confident his party's four candidates would serve well as representatives of the Songkhla people.
Mr Korn, 59, was finance minister in the Democrat-led government in 2008-2011. He resigned as a member of the Democrat Party in 2020 to form a new party called Kla. The Kla Party in 2022 merged with Chart Pattana Party, which was renamed Chartpattanakla Party with Mr Korn as the leader.
