April 30, 2024: For the prime minister to show that he can steer clear of the Shinawatra undue influences, the clock is ticking.
The resignation of Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara from the helm of the Foreign Ministry and the subsequent search for replacement have sparked all kinds of negative speculation regarding the real clouts of Srettha Thavisin, Pheu Thai leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra and the virtual patriarch of the party, Thaksin Shinawatra.
That Srettha might not be able to work with total independence is not a new belief. This perception has been haunting Srettha from Day One, particularly after Thaksin returned from exile and recently got the parole. But the much-anticipated environment is perceived to be getting worse, affecting not just the Parnpree issue but also the highly-controversial digital wallet agenda and more Cabinet positions.
The conservatives outside the government seem to be getting increasingly restless, and those within the coalition are looking too reticent for comfort. And all the while, Pheu Thai keeps shedding popular support and its loss is Move Forward’s gain.
Hardcore Pheu Thai fans might just like Thaksin’s bigger political role or clout, but that will not benefit Srettha as the prime minister who has public interest at stake. Politically, where his own interest is at stake, he will not benefit either. Legally, it’s the same.
April 29, 2024: Reshuffles of ministerial jobs, removals and new appointments allow the prime minister to fine-tune government work, but bad news is that, in Thailand, such an advantage exists only in an ideal world, not reality.
News reports and speculation engulfing the abrupt resignation of Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-nukara has nothing to do with Ukraine, Israel, China, Myanmar or Asean problems. It has always been this way. Education ministers were removed or appointed not because Thai students could not compete with their foreign counterparts. Commerce ministers took positions because they were either party leaders or senior party members who deserved to get something.
Science ministers performed big ceremonies at their workplace’s shrine, partly to follow tradition but mainly because they knew little about science but had been picked up anyway by prime ministers who knew even less. Interior or finance ministers had to be powerful persons in their parties which focused more on control rather than putting the right man on the right job.
On and on it goes.
That the prime minister is allowed to choose is good. Reasons behind the choosing are always bad.
April 28, 2024: In addition to allowing the ruling party to appease voters with virtual giveaways that could elude electoral laws, the digital wallet programme can allow it to build a potentially-valuable database when elections are concerned, according to a well-known anti-Thaksin academic.
Kaewsan Atibodhi, a lecturer whose work encompasses political activism and parliamentary service, said in his latest article that what the Pheu Thai Party needs is a scientific and politically-important internet platform to compete with what the Move Forward Party has, and information in the digital wallet scheme will give the ruling camp that.
“In the last election, Move Forward made the best use of social media which played a big role in the upset, sending numerous unknown candidates to Parliament,” Kaewsan wrote. “Thaksin until today still resents the fact that Pheu Thai was not as good when it came to online usage during the election.”
He said: “One important thing about digital wallet is that it requires a new programme that can essentially become a database of voters in each district across the country, so big so that it will be useful for election campaigns targetting specific communities or even individuals or careers.”
April 27, 2024: “Who funds Voice TV?” has always been a journalistic question, but, then again, a media outlet with strict neutrality is hard to come by these days, even in countries like the United States.
In a Facebook post, well-known exiled activist Somsak Jeamteerasakul tried to link the closure to entrepreneurial politics, saying although business losses were cited as the key reason, there might be something that more than meets the eye.
“Business owners are like this,” he wrote. In a bracket, he said “When they feel the need (to resume TV operations) next time, they will just be able to find what they want anew.”
Voice TV is known for its pro-Thaksin stance. It has announced it will cease broadcasting on all of its platforms on May 31st, after 15 years. Some 100 reporters and staff members are expected to be laid off.
In a statement, the company said the development was caused by business situations affecting the firm and the media industry as a whole.
But political speculation has revolved around the fact that Pheu Thai is now in the government and Thaksin Shinawatra has returned from his exile. Yet on the contrary, political puzzles have also been associated with the notion that Pheu Thai may still be needing a supportive media voice at least as much as before, making the timing of the planned closure quite intriguing.
In a separate Facebook comment, conservative politician Warong Dechgitvigrom appeared to criticise Thaksin Shinawatra’s meeting with government leaders at a time when rumours about a Cabinet reshuffle were rumbling.
“I would like to hear what the justice minister and Corrections Department director general have to say about this (the rumours),” he said.
April 26, 2024: The Election Commission has cautioned that anyone interested in becoming an elected senator must not show association with any particular political party or group.
The warning came in the wake of the Progressive Movement’s “Senators of the people” campaign on its website, an online activity that critics say may violate rules governing senatorial election. The campaign itself can be well-intended, but the movement can also be considered too close to the Move Forward Party.
The Senate, an institution that is strongly tied to Thailand’s political turmoil, swinging back and forth between direct appointment and popular election, is revisiting that “reform” stage again this year when Thais will vote to set up a whole new chamber to replace the military-appointed one.
In a public statement, the EC said a lot of aspirants were giving personal information, political stances and visions to be publicised online, “an activity that may violate the law (on neutrality).”
A largely-expected problem took place when Thailand voted to elect senators years ago. At the time, several candidates sought unofficial yet widely-publicised connections with political parties in order to increase their chances through intimidation of opponents or promotion that they were “representing” certain forces in politics.
April 25, 2024: When you act weird or do silly things in public often enough, it can become charming. US President Joe Biden and his Democratic Party may have figured out a way to turn a crisis into opportunities following his latest embarrassment in front of the microphone.
The 81-year-old leader spoke at a trade union event in Washington, DC on Wednesday, during which, with the aid of a teleprompter, he listed his achievements in office and traditionally blasted Donald Trump.
All went well until he told the audience: “Imagine what we could do next. Four more years.” He then added: “Pause” (which must have been a written instruction for him to turn briefly silent in order to allow the crowd of several hundred people to chant “Four more years.”)
It was Biden who came to Biden’s immediate rescue. He laughed swiftly as the crowd chanted “Four more years” repeatedly. While several media outlets focused on the “Pause” slip-up, some did not miss his own reaction to his own latest gaffe. They mentioned the laughing.
The age issue has presented him and his party with a major, probably-foremost challenge on the election year. His gaffes, which admittedly are coming in droves and almost on a daily basis now, included reference to the “nine wonders of the world”, recalling a recent encounter with long-dead former French leader Francois Mitterand, confusing the presidents of Mexico and Egypt and talking about close relatives’ backgrounds that many said were untrue.
One of the worst came recently when he said in Florida that “we can’t be trusted” instead of “He (Donald Trump) can’t be trusted”, according to The Telegraph. As to who protects or destroys democracy, nobody cares to keep records today.
Mocking oneself before somebody else does it always works, and that can be the strategy of Biden and his party from now on.
April 24, 2024: Think about the “Half-Half” programme that was carried out under a much-maligned government at a time when political protests were fiery and explosive and the opposition was backed by much of the media and enormous ideological masses.
Now, what is taking a seemingly “similar” programme conceived by those who once were on that opposition so long? Why? The Pheu Thai Party insists that digital wallet, like “Half-Half”, is urgent, important to the economy and beneficial to the poor.
The current political atmosphere is more relaxed. Pheu Thai does not have the conservative politicians at its throat. The main opposition party, Move Forward, has not even come out all guns blazing against digital wallet.
Why does a programme considered to be the main government agenda require one legal interpretation after another? Why is the Central Bank often publicly awkward? Why haven’t Thais seen one senior and reliable technocrat speak in favour of digital wallet?
April 23, 2024: It’s “how”, not “if”. The Pheu Thai Party’s flagship policy has been widely expected to be reaffirmed by the Srettha Cabinet, but the manner of reaffirmation will be put under the microscope.
The government has to show solidarity at this critical juncture, as any whisper about heated debate will whip up a big political storm that might even include the usual suspect, or coup speculation to be exact.
The budgetary, monetary and financial nature of the digital wallet programme warrants a Cabinet approval. Its political nature demands a strong, unison go-ahead. Its legal nature means the whole issue does not end with a Cabinet nod.
Pheu Thai’s reluctant coalition allies have managed to avoid direct comments or making definite stances on digital wallet, but time-buying can only go so far.
April 22, 2024: The ultimate question is very simple: Did Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn receive kickbacks from online gambling or not?
The accused must focus his defence on that very question. Portraying himself as a political victim will not purify him. Only providing proof to rebut the bribery allegations can.
His self-defence strategy has seemed to primarily involve claims that other senior police officials were also involved in scandals, that his professional troubles came about because he had been in line to become the next police chief, that the investigators could have been biased politically, and that prejudices go all the way to Government House.
Those claims are not only easily deniable because they are hard to prove. They are also the very reason why it is so difficult to combat corruption in Thailand. They take away the crux of the matter, alleged money that zigzagged its way to the authorities dishonestly.
Such claims often lead to a vicious loop that will go on forever.
So, instead of planting seeds of doubt on National Anti-Corruption Commission and the government as a whole, Surachate maybe should review his self-defence approach. After all, one should be clean first before he or she can accuse others of being dirty.
April 21, 2024: The second biggest party will likely still lose to Move Forward in the next election although Thaksin Shinawatra is apparently trying to reboot it, an opinion survey shows.
A NIDA survey covered more than 1,300 Thais and was conducted just before Songkran. More than 40 % of respondents did not believe that Thaksin’s recent moves would have any effect on Pheu Thai’s image. More than 33 % thought Pheu Thai’s image was “negatively” affected by Thaksin, while 19.5 % said the party’s image was gaining positives thanks to him.
To add to that, pessimism seemed to prevail among Pheu Thai supporters. Of those who voted for the party in last year’s general election, around 32.5 % agreed with the notion that Pheu Thai was a leading force for changes, as opposed to about 16.9 % who did not think so. For this same group of diehard backers, some 26 % were confident of an ultimate election victory next time, compared with 17.1 % who ruled out beating Move Forward.
It was a lot more depressing for Pheu Thai when other respondents were taken into account. The pollsters have found that almost 40 % overall did not think the party would win the next election, as opposed to 12.8 % who predicted that Pheu Thai could bounce back.
April 20, 2024: The word “humanitarian” often graces the diplomacy between Thailand and Myanmar, but the intensified fighting in the neighbouring country must be making Bangkok think increasingly more about something else.
Temporarily-displaced persons, spillover of fighting and incidents warranting sharpened the “neutrality” stance of the Thai government are nothing new. This time, however, they are threatening to impose really big problems because it’s anything but the usual showdowns between superior Myanmar military and backpedaling or smash-and-grab rebel forces.
That Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has tweeted his concern, substantial evacuations of Myanmar’s border civilians, and the staggering amount of money border trades are expected to lose if Myawaddy falls underline the gravity of the situation.
“We are closely monitoring the situation as we are worried,” Sreetha wrote on X. “Let me be clear that I don’t want any problem regarding the Thai sovereignty. We will be always to protect Thai people and provide humanitarian aid (to anyone coming from that side).”
Thailand exports around Bt70 billion worth of goods through the Myawaddy checkpoint annually while imports through the same checkpoint total about Bt30 billion, according to some reports. A change of Myawaddy guard could significantly affect the figures and China would be smiling.
Certainly, if rebels’ control expands beyond the border area as many analysts are suggesting, Myawaddy could be the least of Bangkok’s concern.
April 19. 2024: Take away behind-the-scenes politics, charges against deputy national police chief Surachate Hakparn warrants everything that has happened to him including the suspension order.
Thorough and transparent investigation cannot be carried out with him continuing to be a senior man in the force, whether in an “active” position or not.
Politicisation often gets in the way of anti-corruption fight. “Others are also doing it. Why me?” is a popular excuse.
“Plenty of people, not just me, have bought land intended for the poor or have questionable property deeds.” “Other politicians or businessmen avoided paying taxes like me all the time.” “Police receiving bribes are everywhere.” “Bribery is a Thai culture.”
We all are familiar with these claims, but they are exactly why the country’s war on corruption have failed, since any charge against a powerful or famous person can easily be painted as a political conspiracy.
Pol Gen Surachate is having conflicts with other top police officials, which makes claims of “conspiracy” overshadow evidence. He must defend himself in an environment where there is zero politics. It must be evidence first and everything else later.
April 18, 2024: Bangkok still tops the internet usage table during the water festival period, but revellers at the Thai capital’s popular water-throwing spots did not go online as much for obvious reasons.
AIS said the Khao Lam Road in Bang Saen, Chon Buri, was the water-splashing area where people accessed the internet the most. That was followed by Phuket’s Patong. Bangkok’s Khaosan Road came tenth, below Iconsiam (sixth), Siam Square (seventh) and RCA (eighth).
No immediate reports are available on how many smartphones were damaged.
Between April 11-17, more than 625,000 people used the Don Muang airport for air travel, an increase of almost 15 % compared with the same period last year. The number of flights increased by more than 10% from the previous Songkran.
Outbound and inbound flights between Don Muang and China numbered more than 500.
(The above numbers include immediate pre- and post-Songkran travels.)
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin could not stop smiling when talking about Songkran, saying Thailand has managed to make it a “world class” event thanks largely to improved short- and long-distance public transport.
“There are more tourists than in recent years, and the fun will continue in the second half of April as (I have asked) the tourism authorities to see to it,” he said.
April 17, 2024: Just when Super Poll released findings on Thaksin Shinawatra’s “baramee”, the above picture came out.
You must have watched it, but you can do it again. (Although it doesn’t take time to sink in.)
April 16, 2024: While fans of Thaksin Shinawatra will like latest findings of an opinion survey, haters will feel depressed some more.
It doesn’t matter whether all of them think of the term “Baramee” (influence, or clout, or power, or the three combined) positively or negatively. Thaksin is perceived to be the one with much “Baramee” all the same, like him or hate him.
He has been found by a Super Poll survey of more than 1,100 Thais at the beginning of this month to be highly-influential politically. Almost 67 % of them think so, with the majority of them aged between 30 and 59.
About 61 % of youngest people in the survey find him irrelevant. Still, more than 30 % of the politically active youngsters see otherwise.
Career-wise, Thaksin is thought among more than 78 % of merchants or vendors and entrepreneurs to be influential. The second-biggest group (74.2 %) is government officials. Students constitute the smallest group, or 40.6 %.
April 15, 2024: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s condemnation of Iran’s attack on Israel was unambiguous, but his comment on western assistance to Israel and his own country might not be quite so.
“Ukraine condemns Iran’s attack on Israel using ‘Shahed’ drones and missiles,” he wrote on X. From there he stopped being unequivocal.
“We in Ukraine know very well the horror of similar attacks by Russia, which uses the same ‘Shahed’ drones and Russian missiles, the same tactics of mass air strikes,” Zelensky said.
“The sound of ‘Shahed’ drones, a tool of terror, is the same in the skies over the Middle East and Europe. This sound must serve as a wake-up call to the free world, demonstrating that only our unity and resoluteness can save lives and prevent the spread of terror worldwide.
“… words do not stop drones and do not intercept missiles. … It is critical that the United States Congress make the necessary decisions to strengthen America’s allies at this critical time.”
Was he just stating the obvious, or sounding a little impatient, or expressing the diplomatic version of sulking? You be the judge.
April 14, 2024: Drones and missiles streaking the sky. Their explosive “interceptions”. Launch buttons more important than gun triggers.
The military exchange between Iran and US-backed Israel over the past few hours has lent more weight to a doomsday prediction that World War III would feature sci-fi weaponry and World War IV would involve just bricks and stones.
That it sounds highly pessimistic and absolutely alarmist does not mean it won’t happen.
And peace’s resistance will be increasingly tested in the days to come. John Bolton, the former US national security adviser and ambassador to the UN was quoted by CNN as saying that “passivity at this point for Israel would be a big mistake.”
His opinion, certainly shared by a lot of people who matter, is that “This is not time to play academic games and message and signal. This is a question of power. If they came from a different location containing nuclear warheads, Israel might not be so lucky.”
April 13, 2024: Thaksin Shinawatra has beaten the bosses of the Palang Pracharath, Bhumjaithai or United Thai Nation to it.
Speaking in Chiang Mai, which he seems intent on visiting regularly, Thaksin practically said the Srettha government’s major policy, the digital wallet, would help improve the “sluggish economy” suffering from “lack of financial fluidity” in the system.
Widespread criticism? That’s normal, according to Thaksin. “Whatever you do there are always people who agree and disagree with it,” he said. “But I think the government is putting the country’s interest first. The rate of our growth is slower than those of our Asean neighbours, due to the insufficient fluidity. (I can see that) the government is trying to add fluidity into the system.”
Asked by reporters if he though digital wallet could “go all the way”, Thaksin said: “I don’t think there will be any (big) problem. In a certain way, the government may have to add temporary debts, but reductions (of debts) will take place in another way. Such situations usually will cancel themselves out.”
April 12, 2024: Have you ever told your friends “I forgot my wallet so please take care of the bill and I’ll pay you back at the office”? That’s simply how the Srettha government is getting its flagship policy going.
That the government manages to abort its much-criticised massive borrowing legislative plan for digital wallet does not mean borrowing is not happening. It’s just happening in a more subtle way.
Government spending budgets now and in the future will be rearranged so that cash intended for emergency expenditure can be reallocated. The Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives has also been asked to chip in. It’s borrowed money all the same, but less of a fuss than trying to push a Bt500 billion borrowing bill through Parliament.
Critics, however, say rules governing how BAAC money can be used could present a big legal challenge because, among several things, not all recipients of the promised digital money are farmers.
April 11, 2024: Turning tax money into basically coupons that cannot be used anywhere and anytime will provoke serious legal questions, but that is just one of the problems the government will have to face regarding the digital wallet programme.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s announcement of the “official launch” of his flagship policy does not change the severe political, legal and economic complexities of the programme much, although the massive new borrowing plan has been scrapped.
Apart from the legally-problematic “coupon” analogy, the criteria for recipients which seem to benefit rich people will raise a big political question. In addition, silent yet potentially tumultuous conflicts with the Central Bank will continue.
Moreover, to announce that the supply side must be people in the tax system will take away poor vendors who are outside of it. This is a major political issue in itself. And yet the prime minister has lately been insisting that his digital wallet scheme is aimed at helping the poor, a highly-controversial statement because critics will find it easy to show how many big-time corporate producers will benefit from digital wallet.
Srettha said registration can start in the third quarter of this year. That’s when the time bomb will start ticking.
April 10, 2024: When cover-up makes the public lose faith, there’s only one way to restore it.
Thai people have been sick and tired of the police, not only because of the fact that massive bribe taking is a common knowledge, but also because of the long-held belief that the biggest fish will always get off the hook in the end and soon the business will return to normal.
Action against national police chief Pol Gen Torsak Sukvimol and one of his deputies, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, who were facing government-level investigation, is therefore less than half way through. The fact-finding committee has lent weight to allegations that the latter had been involved in money laundering related to online gambling and the panel has announced it would intensify its probe into charges concerning the former.
To show that the investigation is thorough and fair and is not just one of those superficial missions intended to buy time until the uproar subsides, the government must lay what is found on the public table.
Publicising the findings would pre-empt criticism that it is a cover-up all over again, be fair to the accused, prevent charges of bias against either of the two senior-most police officials and go a long way towards setting a good, administrative and political standard. It will also make an uphill reform easier.
Thai people are smart enough to read money trails, no matter how good their police had been at hiding them.
April 9, 2024: Thailand has taken a significant and first step in dealing with a major social, justice and political problem after 15 police officers present at the infamous dinner party of “Kamnan Nok” where one policeman was blatantly gunned down have been sentenced to jail.
The court verdicts, which also sent many civilians to prison, were clear cut about police obligations or responsibility which should have prevented the killing, or secured the crime scene, or captured the suspect or suspects or at least obstructed the escape.
The maximum punishment handed down was two years with some getting less and others put on probation. Most police officers present at the party have been found guilty of malfeasance.
The court rulings addressed questions that have been in the minds of ordinary citizens since the incident. For example, why did the large number of police guests do practically nothing to help law enforcement during the incident or why didn’t they do anything afterwards?
The verdicts practically lectured the police on professional and moral ethics as well as what they have to do as law enforcement officers.
The man at the centre, Praween Chanklai or Kamnan Nok, was given two years for facilitating malfeasance.
The court practically said that if you are a police officer and a crime takes place in front of you, you have legal and moral obligations to stop it regardless of jurisdiction questions. The court dismissed claims of certain defendants that they did not hear the gunfire.
Phone records had been used against the defendants by the prosecutor.
The murder case is still to come and, from the look of it, more heads will roll.
April 8, 2024: The last thing the biggest political party wanted to do was reinforcing a perception that it chose not to launch a “real” no-confidence assault that would require voting at its conclusion because of unpreparedness.
But after last week’s performance in Parliament, Move Forward must have more or less strengthened that perception. The party looked like a normally-extraordinary student struggling with time pressure and a school project. The Democrats, meanwhile, are that not-so-outstanding student who cunningly offered to present that project in front of the class and get much of the credit.
While Move Forward is ideologically bold, it will need to improve skills that are politically orthodox and necessary.
In deciding not to seek an official censure of the Srettha government, Move Forward told the public that the party was being realistic because it wanted the government to really work first. In other words, we should criticise now but it’s too soon to attempt to officially impeach.
The police crisis belies the lack of urgency. The Democrats were as guilty, but they could get away with it by claiming that a crisis of that magnitude has to be handled by the biggest party portraying itself as a fighter for justice.
Moreover, the Democrats did well with its limited parliamentary resource and status, seizing the opportunity and managing to put Chuan Leekpai in the political spotlight. In fact, Chuan’s showdown with Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin received more media highlight than what Move Forward leader Chaithawat Tulathon said in Parliament.
Only Pita Limjaroenrat’s mystifying speech near the end was something memorable about this censure when Move Forward is concerned.
Move Forward will need to move on, or the Democrats, who always shine when they are in the opposition, will keep scoring points.
April 7, 2024: An on-going investigation into the highest level of police corruption is reaching a crucial state after a fact-finding government committee has concluded that damaging allegations against a deputy national police chief, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, were not groundless.
The test of government resolve does not stop at what to do with Surachate, who had surrendered himself to police to face charges related to online gambling and was immediately granted bail. The government committee is now moving onto allegations hurled against the biggest man in the police force, national police chief Pol Gen Torsak Sukvimol.
Both had been transferred to Government House pending a government-level investigation as charges against them which were believed to have been amplified by rival police factions looked set to get out of control. Now that the fact-finding committee has ruled against Surachate, its work on Torsak will intensify.
The committee will seek to hear more from lawyer Sittra Biabungkerd who has submitted a lot of documents to both the government and opposition claiming that there were evidence that massive bribes have been making their way to the very top of the Thai police.
April 6, 2024: Maybe whether Pheu Thai is a “neo-conservative” or “reformist” party is not as important as Thaksin Shinawatra addressing the issue on a highly-publicised video conference that will raise a lot of legal questions.
If Pheu Thai really needs to be defined, “Peculiar” is perhaps a better word. The fact that convict-on-parole Thaksin managed to present his advices or opinions to an official gathering of party members in such a blatant manner against the backdrop of legal and constitutional rules and political etiquette is a big part of the oddity.
One more thing, “liberal” and “conservative” are very subjective. Today’s liberals can be tomorrow’s conservatives and vice versa. In other words, stick to eccentricity or quirkiness.
April 5, 2024: It was a major political statement showcasing a mixture of defiance, despair and yet confidence. Pita Limjaroenrat can be different things to different people, but most can agree that he is good when it comes to speeches.
His parting shot delivered at the end of the House of Representatives’ no-vote censure of the Srettha administration will not be remembered as a criticism against how it governs Thailand. It’s more of an ideological message in which he implied that rivals were attempting to stunt his party because of the way it thinks, that the “prejudice” could lead to his parliamentary speech being his last, and that there is no way to abort what Move Forward has started.
In other words, he has admitted his party could be dissolved soon and he himself could be banned from politics. But he was adamant that rivals need to do a lot more than that to achieve their goal.
April 4, 2024: Foreign investors need repeated assurances of stability, and this is why Thailand’s prime minister has been acting like a salesman on whirlwind tours, Srettha Thavisin explained.
“Think about it,” he told reporters covering the no-vote censure debate at Parliament. “If you want to buy a new house worth three million or five million baht, it will take you weeks or even months to decide, won’t it? Now, imagine hundreds of billions. It’s money, too. The investors need to be assured time and time again that Thailand is a good place for them to invest.”
Reading between his lines, though, Srettha sort of admitted perception problems about Thailand, ruled by a curious mixture of conservatives and a party used to fighting against them, in addition to having a prime minister who is arguably not the biggest figure in the ruling party.
“We need to assure them that we are ready, that we are open, here to stay, and will do as we promise,” he said.
The prime minister also endorsed juicy rumours that an opposition faction had been sending out feelers regarding a possibility to join his government.
Asked to clarify his parliamentary statement that some people censured his administration one day and asked to join the government the next, Srettha said: “I believe there’s definitely something like that. They haven’t spoken to me directly, of course, because I always said 314 votes are workable and more than enough. It’s not my business if they have been talking to others.
April 3, 2024: There is no way back into love between Thailand’s two biggest political parties, not after what happened in Parliament today.
Make no mistake, the breakup has always looked permanent, but after Move Forward leader Chaithawat Tulathon described Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin as no different from “a leader who came from a coup”, the narrowest window of reunion opportunity has to be gone forever.
Politicians do about-turns and change alliance all the time. Move Forward, however, will have more things than the others to think about if a prospect of getting reunited with Pheu Thai presents itself. Why? For an answer, the largest political party does not need to look further than the man it is criticising, actually.
Srettha and his party Pheu Thai have become a freak political creature at the moment, for obvious reasons. The conservatives’ love-hate relationship with Pheu Thai may be deplorable, but it is understandable, because it is driven by ideology. Pheu Thai, on the other hand, will find it a lot harder to put ideology in its argument.
Move Forward certainly does not want to be the same, because, like Pheu Thai a few years back, it thrives on hardcore, anti-establishment unorthodoxy. If a reunion might bring about political power, it can destroy popularity which is Move Forward’s best and probably only weapon nowadays.
Attacking Srettha like it is doing, vote or no vote, will slam the door shut on coming back together. The prime minister, in his response, stopped short of describing the criticism as unfair. “It’s rather strong,” he said of Chaithawat’s opening statement. “It paints a state of hopelessness, failures, regression, cover-up, destruction and lack of transparency.”
April 2, 2024: Political connections are a big part of what is destroying the police, as partisanship often comes into play when irregularities big or small are investigated, analytical watchers of the force say.
They admit that depoliticising the police is one of the most difficult reforms, but it is something that has to be done, not least because, unlike the army, or air force, or the navy, the police are the closest to law enforcement and justice to man on the street.
The prime minister chairing the police commission hence having considerable influences on who should be promoted to highest police positions is one of the major problems. To add to the difficulties, reckless decentralisation can lead to the current problem turning into mafia-style, bribe-taking satellite networks that can be even harder to deal with, they say.
Journalists familiar with police affairs are stating that the current showdown at the very top police echelon looks like being worsened by political meddling. The current status quo, they insist, makes top officials choose to pamper politicians and forget their obligation of serving and protecting.
April 1, 2024: In a Facebook post listing topics that the Srettha government must be grilled for, the biggest political party did not mention arguably the biggest problem of the hour _ the police crisis.
The Move Forward Party asks the Thai public to monitor this week the apparent government failures it plans to criticise in detail during a parliamentary debate. According to the post, they include uncertainties and so-far no-show of the digital wallet programme, the “sporadic” increases of labour pay, the continuous rise of electricity fees, the continued military conscription of your children and grandchildren, and the continued imprisonment of “some” political prisoners.
Certainly, Move Forward plans to discuss the police but somehow the issue accidentally went missing from the Facebook post. What else could be bigger than a police officer gunned down at a dinner party at a well-known residence right before a big group of senior colleagues, an infamy followed by those at the very top of the police pyramid accusing each other of bribe taking, a tumult exceeded in incredulity only by the prime minister’s admission that he didn’t know what to do?
Daily updates of local and international issues by Tulsathit Taptim
