Thailand's former premier Samak Sundaravej on Tuesday resigned as leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the party will issue an announcement later, a party source told Xinhua.

Samak, who was ordered to leave the Prime Minister Post after a court ruling on September 15 for violating the constitution by hosting two cooking shows on commercial television, submitted his resignation on Tuesday.

The Party will held a press conference late Tuesday, but the source said Samak would not attend the conference.

Anyway, Samak still maintains his position as a Parliament Member of the PPP.

Samak rarely showed up in public after he was disqualified from the government's top post. He even skipped his voting right on a Parliament Session on September 17 during which the PPP's deputy leader Somchai won more than half support from the 480-seat House of Representatives and became Thailand's 26th Prime Minister.

(Xinhua News Agency September 30, 2008)