A decades-long friendship appears to be in ruins after Chalerm Ubumrung dropped a bombshell on Thaksin Shinawatra and challenged the Pheu Thai Party to expel him.
Chalerm, 77, vented his anger at the ruling party and its patriarch after Pheu Thai executives, led by Thaksin’s youngest daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra, reportedly pressured Chalerm’s son and political heir, Wan, to leave the party.
That seemed to be the last straw for Chalerm, who finally broke his silence on Thaksin and Pheu Thai. The two men have known each other for over three decades – long before Chalerm joined Thaksin’s first political party, Thai Rak Thai, in 2005.
After Thai Rak Thai was dissolved by a court order for electoral fraud in 2007, Chalerm remained affiliated with Thaksin’s proxy People Power Party from 2007-2008 and then Pheu Thai. Chalerm never held a Cabinet seat in a Thaksin administration but served in several ministerial posts under his proxy administrations led by Samak Sundaravej, Somchai Wongsawat, and Yingluck Shinawatra, Thaksin’s sister.
Feud between old friends
The latest row came after the veteran politician and his son Wan, a former Bangkok MP, met with Kamronwit Toopkrajang who was battling for reelection as chief executive of Pathum Thani’s Provincial Administrative Organisation against Pheu Thai candidate Charn Phuangphet on June 30.
Wan said he and his father visited “old family friend” Kamronwit after the vote closed, meaning their appearance had no impact on the result.
Kamronwit, a former Thaksin ally, lost the election to Charn, his immediate predecessor in the post, by a slim margin of 1,820 votes with a turnout of over 470,000.
Paetongtarn, as Pheu Thai leader, then summoned Wan to answer accusations that he sided with a party rival. The meeting led to Wan’s resignation from Pheu Thai.
He then joined the Palang Pracharath Party, a partner in the ruling coalition.
Chalerm urged Pheu Thai to expel him along with his son, arguing that he joined Wan in meeting a “party rival” so was equally guilty.
Wan explained that his father, a Pheu Thai list MP, wanted the party to oust him so that he could retain his seat by joining another party. Chalerm had earlier hinted he would follow his son to Palang Pracharath.
In October last year, Chalerm strongly criticised Thaksin and threatened to sever ties after the former prime minister – who is thought to be the ruling party’s de facto leader – reportedly decided not to hand government posts to Chalerm and Wan, because they were “so annoying”. Chalerm’s anger cooled after Paetongtarn visited him at their family house.
Spilling the beans
Chalerm, a political veteran with over four decades of experience, made damaging remarks against Thaksin during a press conference delivered at his lavish house in Bangkok’s Bang Bon district on July 24.
He claimed to have “taken care of” seven legal cases for Thaksin while the fugitive ex-PM was living in self-imposed exile overseas.
Chalerm served as deputy prime minister overseeing the Justice Ministry and the Royal Thai Police in Yingluck’s government.
“I want to debate with him to see who did what to help the other. We know each other quite well, so the debate will be lots of fun,” Chalerm quipped.
“I have never used politics to get rich. But I helped someone to get rich from scratch. I don’t want to name any names, but everyone knows him,” he added.
In 1990, while serving as Prime Minister’s Office minister in charge of the state-run Mass Communication Organisation of Thailand (MCOT), Chalerm approved the awarding of Thailand’s first cable TV concession to IBC, which Thaksin owned. That was four years before Thaksin entered politics, in 1994.
The political veteran also threatened to spill the beans about Thaksin – especially secrets he claimed to be the only person to know – if Pheu Thai continued ignoring his call to be expelled. Chalerm told the press conference he would have no choice but to become an “independent MP” within Pheu Thai, criticising his own party during parliamentary debates.
Lukewarm response
However, Thaksin appeared to be indifferent to Chalerm’s threats. When asked to comment on the matter, the ex-premier said last week, “I pity him. He is already old. I am advanced in years, and he is even older than me.”
Thaksin turned 75 last Friday (July 26) and is two years younger than Chalerm.
The patriarch’s daughter, Paetongtarn, kicked Chalerm out of Pheu Thai’s Line chat group after the veteran’s press conference.
The leader said party executives thought it was best to exclude Chalerm from the chatroom to avoid more drama.
Analysts said the father and son’s value to Pheu Thai appears to have declined. They reckoned that Chalerm is ageing while Wan is no longer considered an asset by the ruling party after losing the Ubumrung family stronghold of Bang Bon constituency to a debutant from the Move Forward Party in last year’s general election.
By Thai PBS World’s Political Desk
