Thaksin lands at Suvarnabhumi and taken to court

[marshbags]

The Nation, Sun, March 2, 2008

SIDELINES

A charade of false pretences at the airport

We have seen it. Finally the long-awaited moment took place on Thursday following long speculation over the exact time and date.Published on March 2, 2008

A rousing welcome greeted Thaksin Shinawatra when he returned to his motherland after 17 months spent in self-imposed exile evading an arrest warrant issued by the Criminal Court.

It was not a low-key, lacklustre homecoming, as Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama had earlier claimed it would be. The frenzy was expected. All those who wanted Thaksin's blessings and new opportunities for career advancement as well as a boost to their business and political fortunes were there.

Being absent from the scene with a lame excuse would have meant losing a golden chance to be part of the inner circle of yes men and cronies of some significance.

If there was anything that might have disappointed Thaksin, it was the number of admirers who showed up to welcome him. There were just a few thousand people and most of them were mobilised by some kind of persuasion and inducement - financial, of course.

The low turnout could have been due to poor handling, or the cronies' unwillingness to part with hard cash for fear that their spending would not be duly appreciated by the boss.

During the high times, tens of thousands of people could be hired to create a big scene similar to the homecoming of Juan and Eva Peron amidst cheers from the victims of populist plans and financial handouts.

The crowd that waited for several hours with all of their hearts and soul were the hard-core fans and those obsessed with blind faith and devotions. The politicians wearing business attire were there because they, like Faust, have sold their souls to the devil for financial gain.

Nevertheless, they all disregarded the fact that it was the arrival of a criminal suspect, a fugitive who had to return to deal with pressing political problems that could break his grip on power. Thaksin is back to ensure that his nominee head of government does not act too independently and get out of control too soon.

It was not unexpected that Thaksin did what he had to do - exploit the full blaze of publicity and suspense for all he could. His kneeling down and paying respect to the home ground was overacting on his part and too well stage-managed.

Judging from the screenplay and the charade, played out quite naturally in front of the TV and other cameras, he surely deserved an Oscar award in the film "No Country for Old Men", though Thaksin would not consider himself an old man. Not yet at 59 years old.

The reality at that particular moment, aside from the charade and play-acting, could be the false pretence and the bravado. The smiles of his cronies were devoid of sincerity. They deserved some Oscar nominations for their farcical performance in addition to pats on the back and shoulders by the boss.

Oh yes, we also detected a glint of fear and uncertainty in the eyes of Thaksin despite the ironclad security around him. The self-confidence he tried to exude failed to conceal some worries about unpredictable factors.

We should not look at the event as an arrangement of grandeur and honour for a super VIP or a worshipped icon. The deceased drug kingpin Pablo Escobar of Colombia and ex-strongman Manuel Noriega of Panama also warranted such protection as well.

What Thaksin and his family fervently need from now on is maximum publicity - positive or negative - just to remind the people that they are still around. Next is freedom from all pending criminal charges. The disgrace so far sustained could be written off simply as a failed business investment.

How would he achieve that? A well-funded disinformation and public-relations campaign will be carried out to create the impression that he has been a victim of injustice and political conspiracy by those envious of his success. So far, this has had a little success among the gullible.

What the public should be aware of and keep a close watch on is the entire judicial process dealing with Thaksin, his family members and cronies. If history is to serve as a worrisome guide, there must be sufficient vigilance to ensure that there is nothing suspicious in the performance of duty.

We have learned about attempts to bribe some judges and witnesses in previous legal battles in which Thaksin and his family members were involved. The public cannot rest assured that the judicial process from now on could not be twisted and bought.

Senior officials crucial in law-enforcement have already been removed to inactive posts and replaced by trusted hands of Thaksin in just a few days. These were all bold and blatant acts reflecting an arrogance of power and disregard, if not contempt, for the public.

We are reliving the Thaksin era, ironically in just 17 months, thanks to the ignorance and sloppy performance of the Surayud administration. That was a sheer disgrace to the country. That team would not want to be remembered, but rather forgotten, for the sins of omission and the lack of a sense of mission they displayed.

This time it is not about a fight with Thaksin, but a hard struggle on the part of the people to ensure that ultimately our judicial process does not succumb to the power of money.

Sopon Onkgara

The Nation

marshbags

P.S.

No way did he kiss the ground, he rested his forehead on his hands and kept his mouth well clear of the surface.

The posturing @#$%*%*

Edited March 2, 2008 by marshbags

[traveller5000]

Good timing then for this:

haha, one of the best Thaksin cartoons, and quite true

and a good matching article from the post above

The Nation, Sun, March 2, 2008

SIDELINES

A charade of false pretences at the airport

<snip>

It was not a low-key, lacklustre homecoming, as Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama had earlier claimed it would be. The frenzy was expected. All those who wanted Thaksin's blessings and new opportunities for career advancement as well as a boost to their business and political fortunes were there.

Being absent from the scene with a lame excuse would have meant losing a golden chance to be part of the inner circle of yes men and cronies of some significance.

<snip>

Edited March 2, 2008 by traveller5000

[younghusband]

For over a decade Thais spent all their money to make AIS the best and richest Thai company (almost). Thaksin was importing stuff and selling it to Thais, all they learned from it is back office and marketing, no technology transfer, and unlike car makers, no local manufacturing. Then, after milking domestic market dry, he sold it off to Singapore so that Singaporeans can enjoy their pensions.

There's nothing nationalistis about that, only personal greed bordering on treason.

This is a very distorted version of events which few unbiased observers would recognise.Pointless arguing however with someone who thinks there has been a genuine transfer of technology in the car manafacturing industry(as if it was comparable with telecoms anyway).Thailand's (well the middle class bed wetting sector anyway) reaction to the Temasek sale made the country a laughing stock - as though Temasek wouldn't invest and improve its investment in Thailand.Did they think the Singaporeaens would carry the assets away with them? SCB (Crown Property Bureau investment) who were involved in the financing of the deal didn't think anything was wrong and neither would any sensible person.

Sorry Plus you are normally quite lucid but you've lost it on this one.If you argued the deal was politically inept I would agree with you but there were no other serious objections.Ask any real businessman and they will tell you the same.

Edited March 2, 2008 by younghusband

[Briggsy]

A great piece from the Nation and a clever cartoon from I'm not sure where.

Just 2 points omitted from the article is one of the main reasons for his return is to ensure he gets his hands on the money in those accounts and, secondly, who wasn't there at the airport. Why, the PM of course, who isn't really the PM, well, only on paper!

[Ricardo]

Another spokesman, Pongthep Thepkanchana, said Thaksin had kissed the ground upon arrival on Thursday in "genuine respect for his homeland". It was not a staged act as critics claimed, he said.

- The Nation

Forgive me if I'm being picky, but the photo I saw had him kneeling, spontaneously if one is to believe his spokesman, resting his hands on the ground, and kissing the backs of his own hands, not the ground as claimed above.

I'm sure this was a gesture of respect, for being back upon Thai soil, after his long self-imposed exile while avoiding and delaying the corruption cases which might have already found him guilty, had he been tried 'in absentia'.

But I also thought it typical, that he kissed himself , and not actually the ground of his homeland.

Purely spontaneously, and in an unplanned but most revealing way, really.

[sriracha john]

Thai business jittery at return of populist Thaksin

BANGKOK--Ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra's homecoming has left business leaders wary as the self-made billionaire casts a long shadow over the new government's economic policies.

Although Thaksin repeated his vow to quit politics in a nationally televised news conference, doubts over his pledge soon emerged when the Finance Minister said he wanted ex-premier to be his advisor.

Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee said Thaksin's entrepreneurial knowledge could help Thailand's economy, which has languished for the past two years.

But business leaders voiced worries that Thaksin's involvement could do more harm than good for the second largest economy in Southeast Asia.

"Thaksin knows how to improve the economy. In that sense, it's a good thing to have him as a policy advisor," said Kietphong Noichaiboon, vice chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries, the kingdom's biggest business group. "But Thaksin has many opponents. That's why we are worried about its political impact" on the economy, Kietphong said.

Pornsilp Patcharintanakul, deputy secretary general of the Board of Trade, a major business group, warned that even the perception that Thaksin had a hand in running the government could again spark street demonstrations and derail economic growth.

"I am already worried about a potential political crisis. Both his supporters and opponents want to exploit Thaksin's return for political purposes," Pornsilp said.

"If I were a foreign investor, I would wait and see instead of making new investments. The political situation is not getting better, and this is very negative for our economy," he said.

Lifting the flagging economy is one of the top priorities for the government of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, an ally of Thaksin, who took office in early February.

Surapong, also one of Thaksin's most trusted aides, has said he would follow in the footsteps of the deposed premier. The Finance Minister also said he would kick start multi-billion-dollar public works projects, which were launched by Thaksin. He has vowed to bring at least 5.0-percent economic growth.

On Friday, the Bank of Thailand announced it would lift the currency controls, one of the most controversial measures imposed by the previous government in a bid to halt the Thai baht's rise against the dollar.

For Vallop Tiasiri, president of the Thai Automotive Institute, the sharp shift came as no surprise. "Although Thaksin is not directly involved in this government, he is still a very influential figure in Thai politics," said Vallop, whose state-funded agency promotes the auto industry. "I hope the government can control anti-Thaksin forces, but everybody is worried about the political situation," he said.

Kietphong agreed that while Thaksin had the right to return, he may spell political trouble. "In the last two years, our economy suffered due to political problems. We cannot suffer again," Kietphong said.

- Agence France-Presse

[sriracha john]

For Seneque in Post #236 and Ricardo in Post #316...

Deep within the eye of the storm

With the controversial Thaksin Shinawatra back in Bangkok, Thailand braces for a new round of political storms

FORMER Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra returned to Thailand on Thursday, two weeks after the Valentine’s Day date he had earlier set for his arrival.

Although his return came not a day too soon for his supporters, it was considerably sooner than Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej who ran for the premiership as his nominee had expected.

Clearly, things are not going as smoothly as planned even within the Thaksin “camp”.

Amid the realpolitik, there was Thaksin’s customary element of brash political showbiz. He wanted to play on the image of a returning prodigal son, so he knelt pope-like and “kissed” Thai soil upon his arrival.

He did not do so upon setting foot on Thailand when alighting from the aircraft, which would have been appropriate, but only after exiting the airport’s arrival lounge where he would be closer to the waiting crowd and cameras.

As a dozen flashlights popped, many people seemed to forget that he did not really kiss Thai soil, but merely placed his forehead to his knuckles as his palms spread out on the tiled floor.

Precisely because many Thais are set to gloss over some basic facts, and that in turn influencing foreign news reporting, it is an important time now to keep the record straight.

As Thaksin professed a love for the country and faith in its judicial system, the sentiments have come as a recent and opportune development. His “ABC” of preferred country of residence had recently included Australia, Britain and China.

Another myth concerns his return itself, with reports circulated worldwide that his opponents had resisted his homecoming. All parties had sought his return, his supporters wanting him to regain power, his enemies hoping to see him convicted, and Thaksin himself wanting “to clear my name”.

The key question now is where Thailand would go from here. Despite still having to face charges of corruption and abuse of power, Thaksin has effectively reprised his role as national leader by making others take their cue from his next move.

He has said he would not want to return to politics, but few who know him believe that. He would not want to make an immediate grab for power because he has to focus on his legal challenges, so it makes sense to put his critics and foes at ease for now.

Meanwhile Samak seems to be having a fit of sorts, insisting he and not Thaksin is the “real prime minister” and declaring on Friday that he was nobody’s nominee.

Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee, for his part, had publicly stated he would be asking Thaksin for advice on the economy.

Samak’s People’s Power Party (PPP) itself is not doing well, despite or rather because it is a stand-in for Thaksin’s banned Thai Rak Thai Party. Samak’s colleagues are reportedly going in one direction and Samak himself in another, and not quite according to Thaksin’s game plan.

Few Thai politicians qualify to be Thaksin’s political nominee, and fewer still can endure in that position. Samak’s de jure premiership is set to clash with Thaksin’s de facto leadership as the headstrong character of one could easily collide with the control freak nature of the other.

The possibilities so far include Thaksin staying abroad for a while after initially answering to the charges against him.

It is said that he would want to show at least that he is not manipulating Thai politics, particularly when he intends to do so.

Charges of election fraud against the PPP’s House Speaker Yongyuth Tiyapairat for bribing voters may spread further to implicate the party. If it does, the PPP itself may be banned, throwing another proverbial spanner in the (fire)works.

As Thaksin works his way through the still-fledgling political set-up and tentative military posture on events, the charges against him might in time dissipate and disappear. Central to this is the future of the Assets Examination Committee compiling the evidence against him.

The question of whether Thaksin will return to politics is not so much obsolete as redundant, because it is not a matter of his doing so, but doing so visibly. He need not be involved in government to be active in politics, at least in the five years he is banned from government posts.

Another major institution the former premier will want to tackle is the army, now headed by his former classmate Gen Anupong Paochinda. The deal maker in Thaksin could see the advantage of not dwelling on the past like Anupong’s role in the 2006 coup, when a future dividend like the army’s non-resistance to Thaksin’s return to power can be assured.

Among all the uncertainties, Thaksin’s return can be sure of keeping Thailand deeply polarised.

- The Star (Malaysia)

[Plus]

For over a decade Thais spent all their money to make AIS the best and richest Thai company (almost). Thaksin was importing stuff and selling it to Thais, all they learned from it is back office and marketing, no technology transfer, and unlike car makers, no local manufacturing. Then, after milking domestic market dry, he sold it off to Singapore so that Singaporeans can enjoy their pensions.

There's nothing nationalistis about that, only personal greed bordering on treason.

This is a very distorted version of events which few unbiased observers would recognise.Pointless arguing however with someone who thinks there has been a genuine transfer of technology in the car manafacturing industry(as if it was comparable with telecoms anyway).Thailand's (well the middle class bed wetting sector anyway) reaction to the Temasek sale made the country a laughing stock - as though Temasek wouldn't invest and improve its investment in Thailand.Did they think the Singaporeaens would carry the assets away with them? SCB (Crown Property Bureau investment) who were involved in the financing of the deal didn't think anything was wrong and neither would any sensible person.

Sorry Plus you are normally quite lucid but you've lost it on this one.If you argued the deal was politically inept I would agree with you but there were no other serious objections.Ask any real businessman and they will tell you the same.

I don't quite understand what you are arguing against. Telecoms didn't transfer any technology to Thailand, granted it wasn't only AIS, but it was the leader that set pace, especially after 1997.

Practically any other industry transferred manufacturing to Thailand and made it an export base - autos and electronics are obvious examples. Toyota even moved their R&D base for pickup trucks here.

You could say telecoms are different, but other countries, like Korea and Japan, are at the forefront of applying latest techonologies. Korea is the first coutnry in the world to roll out Wimax, Japan is far ahead of anyone else in 3G. Where is AIS, and Thailand by extention?

If ten years ago Thai companies insisted on Nokia or Ericsson setting up phone manufacturing plants here Thailand would have been far ahead of China for at least three years. They could even force them to set equipment manufacturing and make Thailand a regional hub for SE Asia, Thailand could be the first to roll out GPRS/Edge and even 3G in the region. Didn't happen.

Instead AIS locked the customers to using only phones officially imported by AIS itself, at prices double of that in Malaysia and charged double for making phone calls or sending messages (more like ten times more for SMS, actually). Situation didn't change until Telenor and Orange came in, but it was too late - Thailand already lagged behind.

So here is the summary - AIS imported technology and equipment, collected good money at premium rates from Thais for using it, and then sold the operation to Singapore. What is there to argue about?

Temasek is not a telecom operator, they bought AIS to enjoy the benefits, not to spend on it. They will not make risky investments in promising techonology, they need a stable income stream, that's all. Money WILL flow from here to there, that's the whole point of their investment.

From Thailand's national interests point of view, it was a bad decision, cementing Thailand's third rate position forever.

[tropo]

Pongthep assured that Thaksin will not get involved in politics and will focus his attention on his educational foundation and developing his Manchester City football team, of which he will have to make a lot of trips abroad. *Very presumptuous of him in light of the Supreme Court's bail condition to the contrary*

It's not presumptuous at all. He showed good faith in returning, understanding full well all the consequences.

[sriracha john]

It's presumptuous in the fact that he is barred from traveling outside of Thailand without the expressed permission of the Supreme Court. It's presumptuous of him to monopolize the Supreme Court's time with repeated requests for permission so that he can make "lots of trips" which are only for business purposes. That and the fact that an arrest warrant was issued for him months and months and months ago which he ignored.

Edited March 2, 2008 by sriracha john

[marshbags]

Another spokesman, Pongthep Thepkanchana, said Thaksin had kissed the ground upon arrival on Thursday in "genuine respect for his homeland". It was not a staged act as critics claimed, he said.

- The Nation

Forgive me if I'm being picky, but the photo I saw had him kneeling, spontaneously if one is to believe his spokesman, resting his hands on the ground, and kissing the backs of his own hands, not the ground as claimed above.

Same, same on the various tele coverages as my wife can testify !!!!!!!!

I'm sure this was a gesture of respect, for being back upon Thai soil, after his long self-imposed exile while avoiding and delaying the corruption cases which might have already found him guilty, had he been tried 'in absentia'.

But I also thought it typical, that he kissed himself , and not actually the ground of his homeland.

Purely spontaneously, and in an unplanned but most revealing way, really.

[LuckyFive8888]

For over a decade Thais spent all their money to make AIS the best and richest Thai company (almost). Thaksin was importing stuff and selling it to Thais, all they learned from it is back office and marketing, no technology transfer, and unlike car makers, no local manufacturing. Then, after milking domestic market dry, he sold it off to Singapore so that Singaporeans can enjoy their pensions.

There's nothing nationalistis about that, only personal greed bordering on treason.

This is a very distorted version of events which few unbiased observers would recognise.Pointless arguing however with someone who thinks there has been a genuine transfer of technology in the car manafacturing industry(as if it was comparable with telecoms anyway).Thailand's (well the middle class bed wetting sector anyway) reaction to the Temasek sale made the country a laughing stock - as though Temasek wouldn't invest and improve its investment in Thailand.Did they think the Singaporeaens would carry the assets away with them? SCB (Crown Property Bureau investment) who were involved in the financing of the deal didn't think anything was wrong and neither would any sensible person.

Sorry Plus you are normally quite lucid but you've lost it on this one.If you argued the deal was politically inept I would agree with you but there were no other serious objections.Ask any real businessman and they will tell you the same.

didn't thaksin changed the law before he sold-off his shincorp to gain maximum profit allowing foreign entities to own up to 49% in telecom firms from 25% previously allowed that came into effect on january 23? if i'm not mistaken, this is also the day or maybe 2-3 days later that temasek group acquired shincorp. this alone, forget about the tax, is a sign that the square head manipulated the sell-off and used his power as prime minister for his own interest. why still many posters here cannot dig into this?

[chownah]

From Thailand's national interests point of view, it was a bad decision, cementing Thailand's third rate position forever.

So, selling the communications business was a bad decision from national interests point of view?....This conflicts with opinions I have read from actual business analysts...where did you get your opinion?...did you just pull it out of your....hat?

Chownah

[chownah]

For over a decade Thais spent all their money to make AIS the best and richest Thai company (almost). Thaksin was importing stuff and selling it to Thais, all they learned from it is back office and marketing, no technology transfer, and unlike car makers, no local manufacturing. Then, after milking domestic market dry, he sold it off to Singapore so that Singaporeans can enjoy their pensions.

There's nothing nationalistis about that, only personal greed bordering on treason.

This is a very distorted version of events which few unbiased observers would recognise.Pointless arguing however with someone who thinks there has been a genuine transfer of technology in the car manafacturing industry(as if it was comparable with telecoms anyway).Thailand's (well the middle class bed wetting sector anyway) reaction to the Temasek sale made the country a laughing stock - as though Temasek wouldn't invest and improve its investment in Thailand.Did they think the Singaporeaens would carry the assets away with them? SCB (Crown Property Bureau investment) who were involved in the financing of the deal didn't think anything was wrong and neither would any sensible person.

Sorry Plus you are normally quite lucid but you've lost it on this one.If you argued the deal was politically inept I would agree with you but there were no other serious objections.Ask any real businessman and they will tell you the same.

didn't thaksin changed the law before he sold-off his shincorp to gain maximum profit allowing foreign entities to own up to 49% in telecom firms from 25% previously allowed that came into effect on january 23? if i'm not mistaken, this is also the day or maybe 2-3 days later that temasek group acquired shincorp. this alone, forget about the tax, is a sign that the square head manipulated the sell-off and used his power as prime minister for his own interest. why still many posters here cannot dig into this?

I believe you are correct that the law was changed to allow for the sale...I believe that the law was changed in a legal manner with the proper votes taken in the proper way and and I would say that Toxin probably did use his power to benefit himself with this.....I don't find this surprising...at least he changed the law so that he could sell his own (well actually not his own but his family's property) property which is at least a cut above other types of questionable uses of power. Don't forget that there was another telecom that was sold in what I think was a similar way.....called D-Tak.....can anyone fill us in on how the D-Tak deal was done?

Also, it has never been shown clearly that Thailand has in any way suffered from Toxin arranging the law so that his family could sell their property.....I've heard that if Toxin hadn't sold then the business would have turned unprofitable and that the entire world is/was going through a shakeout period in telecoms where either you got big....sold to someone who was already big...or sank into oblivion....and it was the consensus (or so I heard) that Toxin didn't have the option of "getting big".... I don't know if this is true or not but it is what I have heard...anyone have some information along these lines?

Chownah

It's presumptuous of him to monopolize the Supreme Court's time with repeated requests for permission

I think this is happening only in your imagination....and probably will ALWAYs only happen in your imagination...I find it really difficult to believe that the Supreme Court would allow their time to be 'monopolized' by one Mr. Toxin.

Chownah

Edited March 2, 2008 by chownah

[chownah]

It's presumptuous in the fact that he is barred from traveling outside of Thailand without the expressed permission of the Supreme Court. It's presumptuous of him to monopolize the Supreme Court's time with repeated requests for permission so that he can make "lots of trips" which are only for business purposes. That and the fact that an arrest warrant was issued for him months and months and months ago which he ignored.

It might be incorrect to say that he ignored the warrant....I don't think any of us here knows if he may have acknowledged it....to someone...at some time....it would be more in keeping with what we actually know to say that he did not comply with the demands of the arrest warrant....that is he did not show up when directed to do so within the time constraints.

Chownah

[mikethevigoman]

I do not mess with politics in Thailand, but here I am totally puzzled.

Look at the way some poor guy is paraded by the police for a small crime ...

I guess one needs to have stolen some real big money to be treated with so much respect !

Those who only stole some thousand(s) Baht do not deserve any respect, this one who stole tens of million deserves the respect he is shown ...

Its not much different in the west,convicted pop stars and film star drug users can still go to the states and like and a normal person will have their visa denied for smoking a joint and getting caught, there are these double standards of treatment everywhere,.this is what money does to people,.gives them credibility, deserved or not,.

[ThaiAdventure]

I do not mess with politics in Thailand, but here I am totally puzzled.

Look at the way some poor guy is paraded by the police for a small crime ...

I guess one needs to have stolen some real big money to be treated with so much respect !

Those who only stole some thousand(s) Baht do not deserve any respect, this one who stole tens of million deserves the respect he is shown ...

Its not much different in the west,convicted pop stars and film star drug users can still go to the states and like and a normal person will have their visa denied for smoking a joint and getting caught, there are these double standards of treatment everywhere,.this is what money does to people,.gives them credibility, deserved or not,.

Tell that to Amy Winehouse....lol

[LuckyFive8888]

For over a decade Thais spent all their money to make AIS the best and richest Thai company (almost). Thaksin was importing stuff and selling it to Thais, all they learned from it is back office and marketing, no technology transfer, and unlike car makers, no local manufacturing. Then, after milking domestic market dry, he sold it off to Singapore so that Singaporeans can enjoy their pensions.

There's nothing nationalistis about that, only personal greed bordering on treason.

This is a very distorted version of events which few unbiased observers would recognise.Pointless arguing however with someone who thinks there has been a genuine transfer of technology in the car manafacturing industry(as if it was comparable with telecoms anyway).Thailand's (well the middle class bed wetting sector anyway) reaction to the Temasek sale made the country a laughing stock - as though Temasek wouldn't invest and improve its investment in Thailand.Did they think the Singaporeaens would carry the assets away with them? SCB (Crown Property Bureau investment) who were involved in the financing of the deal didn't think anything was wrong and neither would any sensible person.

Sorry Plus you are normally quite lucid but you've lost it on this one.If you argued the deal was politically inept I would agree with you but there were no other serious objections.Ask any real businessman and they will tell you the same.

didn't thaksin changed the law before he sold-off his shincorp to gain maximum profit allowing foreign entities to own up to 49% in telecom firms from 25% previously allowed that came into effect on january 23? if i'm not mistaken, this is also the day or maybe 2-3 days later that temasek group acquired shincorp. this alone, forget about the tax, is a sign that the square head manipulated the sell-off and used his power as prime minister for his own interest. why still many posters here cannot dig into this?

I believe you are correct that the law was changed to allow for the sale...I believe that the law was changed in a legal manner with the proper votes taken in the proper way and and I would say that Toxin probably did use his power to benefit himself with this.....I don't find this surprising...at least he changed the law so that he could sell his own (well actually not his own but his family's property) property which is at least a cut above other types of questionable uses of power. Don't forget that there was another telecom that was sold in what I think was a similar way.....called D-Tak.....can anyone fill us in on how the D-Tak deal was done?

Also, it has never been shown clearly that Thailand has in any way suffered from Toxin arranging the law so that his family could sell their property.....I've heard that if Toxin hadn't sold then the business would have turned unprofitable and that the entire world is/was going through a shakeout period in telecoms where either you got big....sold to someone who was already big...or sank into oblivion....and it was the consensus (or so I heard) that Toxin didn't have the option of "getting big".... I don't know if this is true or not but it is what I have heard...anyone have some information along these lines?

Chownah

It's presumptuous of him to monopolize the Supreme Court's time with repeated requests for permission

I think this is happening only in your imagination....and probably will ALWAYs only happen in your imagination...I find it really difficult to believe that the Supreme Court would allow their time to be 'monopolized' by one Mr. Toxin.

Chownah

chownah, don't forget that thaksin lied full time about selling shincorp to temasek just days before the deal. it was televise in all the news before the deal was made and he denied it big time! lier, lier, go to hel_l... now, what was that all about?

[Thai at Heart]

The quote from Baboon says that Taksin forbade foreigners buying land. From my memory, of 20+ years visting Thailand, those laws preceeded Taksin. Am I wrong?

No, but Thaksin and his party stood on Nationalist policies and many times used these laws for political gain and to curry favour with the Thai electorate.

Not to mention the Thaksin administration brought in many of the new laws curtailing rights for foreigners including the new FBA draft.

So the hypocrisy of his position remains regardless if Thaksin was responsible for the laws 20 years ago.

The new draft to the FBA, which isn't really anything more than closing nominee shareholdings (which were always illegal anyway) was not enacted by Thaksin. It was always on the books, it was just that nobody enforced it properly. When Thaksin ran a bus through the loophole, people realised that if he could do it, any company could do it, and hence the loophole should be closed.

Things like retailing in terms of Tesco had always been off limits to foreigners, the issue would be is the 51percent a real or nominee holding. We can thank the coup makers for reinvigorating this one.

[chownah]

chownah, don't forget that thaksin lied full time about selling shincorp to temasek just days before the deal. it was televise in all the news before the deal was made and he denied it big time! lier, lier, go to hel_l... now, what was that all about?

Oh My!!!! Toxin told a lie!!! That is a very very serious accusation!!! Really I think that common decency requires you to provide some kind of verifiable evidence that indicated that Toxin told a lie. My my my!!! If this is true then it is very very disgusting and not nice!!

Chownah

[steveromagnino]

I believe you are correct that the law was changed to allow for the sale...I believe that the law was changed in a legal manner with the proper votes taken in the proper way and and I would say that Toxin probably did use his power to benefit himself with this.....I don't find this surprising...at least he changed the law so that he could sell his own (well actually not his own but his family's property) property which is at least a cut above other types of questionable uses of power. Don't forget that there was another telecom that was sold in what I think was a similar way.....called D-Tak.....can anyone fill us in on how the D-Tak deal was done?

Also, it has never been shown clearly that Thailand has in any way suffered from Toxin arranging the law so that his family could sell their property.....I've heard that if Toxin hadn't sold then the business would have turned unprofitable and that the entire world is/was going through a shakeout period in telecoms where either you got big....sold to someone who was already big...or sank into oblivion....and it was the consensus (or so I heard) that Toxin didn't have the option of "getting big".... I don't know if this is true or not but it is what I have heard...anyone have some information along these lines?

Actually, to claim that the Telecoms sector was not completely screwed up by Thaksin is a joke. Prior to 1997, the playing field was extremely tilted, with only AIS enjoying the GSM 1800 frequency which requires fewer stations and less capital investment than other frequencies. Only AIS had a deal with the TOT for revenue share, while competitors have deals with CAT. Some competitors paid more than others under their build transfer operate agreements, and one of the Democrat's major initiatives was intending to address this, as stated under the 1997 constitution, to set up a national telecoms commission to sort it out.

This is the major reason Thaksin got into politics - AIS is the cash cow of the Shin empire. While Shin Sat may have been able to obtain a monopoly on their service as well, it is a backward technology and has never been profitable like AIS. In 2000 pre election, AIS was sitting fairly debt free, it had majority control of the market, competitors were almost NPLs and they had the best frequency. Deregulation was going to be a major threat.

Once in power, Thaksin ensured the NTC never got going; even by 2006 at the time of the coup, the commission had never been formed; because a concession conversion fair to all parties would be least fair to the party (AIS) who had the best rates as a result of negotation back in, IIRC about 1991/92 and based on what some suspect was a fairly corrupt arrangement (as was typical back then) but a major deterent to true competition. TTNT, then Worldcom (no DTAC) and others - just look at their stockmarket performance compared to AIS during this period - they were hamstrung by debt and lack of deregulation.

Any analyst's report during this period regarding telcoms would somehow write something along the lines of 'buy/hold AIS, they seem to receive their fair share of positive regulatory policy'. Check it out for yourself.

Not content with ensuring that the market remained tilted; the government of TRT introduced legislation pushing the foreign ownership % down from 49% TO JUST 25% which was to ensure that TAC (now DTAC) and other networks would not be able to easily receive a much needed capital injection. TAC became DTAC through some sort of share swap/buy out with a company structure not tested (but initially approved) the same as Shin; subsequently they, like other corporates, have had to restructure to get back to 49% genuine ownership. Sunrise7, your comment that just because DTAC could do it, so should Shin be able to holds the same amount of water as me claiming personal trips to Europe as company expense...then one of my workmates doing the same thing not long after. Just like properties in nominee ownership; technically illegal, practically not enforced...until after the Shin deal where a bunch of corporates were investigated and had to restructure their ownerships.

The reason to try to stop any competitors coming in was to maintain AIS's strongest hold on the market. Once DTAC and then Orange/True came in hard into the market, a price war began, and we will recall THAT is when the telcoms market started to move forward- low call minutes pricing, prepay, fairly priced hand sets, and so on.

Taksin sold out because it was becoming clear his day was coming to an end, and so he changed the laws to get close to legal (away from 25%) and sold his empire. That, IMHO is his right. He commanded a premium price and did a deal with Singapore that even they must be regretting now. They overpaid.

But to suggest he didn't use his power to inflate the value of his empire, set up FTAs with Australia/india to favour ShinSat, use political trips to Burma/INdia etc to get Shinsat contracts, and to sell shares off market at a few baht, which sold the next day for 45b I think it was via his kids......(something that DTAC were NOT brazen enough to do) is to ignore the reality of the past.

[steveromagnino]

Things like retailing in terms of Tesco had always been off limits to foreigners, the issue would be is the 51percent a real or nominee holding. We can thank the coup makers for reinvigorating this one.

Actually, if I recall correctly, retail is one of the few industries where up to 100% foreign ownership is allowed; which is why we see the big hyper markets all here in force.

Tesco Lotus is I think 98% foreign, and 2% CP. This was part of the Democrat policy for handling the NPL situation in retail; BIg C, Tesco Lotus were both previuosly majority owned by Thai companies, and sold off.

Which is one of the tools CP have used in painting the evil hypermarkets as dangerous and why they need to be stopped via the retailers assocation which supposedly represents small retail mom and pop stores.

TRT put in major checks for the hyper markets.

Strangely enough, this left room for CP to expand 7:11 as fast as they could, is there any coincidence that CP are one of the large backers of TRT???! 555555

[LuckyFive8888]

chownah, don't forget that thaksin lied full time about selling shincorp to temasek just days before the deal. it was televise in all the news before the deal was made and he denied it big time! lier, lier, go to hel_l... now, what was that all about?

Oh My!!!! Toxin told a lie!!! That is a very very serious accusation!!! Really I think that common decency requires you to provide some kind of verifiable evidence that indicated that Toxin told a lie. My my my!!! If this is true then it is very very disgusting and not nice!!

Chownah

exactly, and you are still licking his feet!

***inflammatory response deleted***

Edited March 4, 2008 by sbk
keep this polite please--sbk

[LuckyFive8888]

Oh My!!!! Toxin told a lie!!! That is a very very serious accusation!!! Really I think that common decency requires you to provide some kind of verifiable evidence that indicated that Toxin told a lie. My my my!!! If this is true then it is very very disgusting and not nice!!

Chownah

thaksin's denial here:

a classic display of double-talk

other interesting stuffs here:

deal of the century

[steveromagnino]

....his administration was in fact very open to foreign investment and his policies revealed a desire to cut down on inneficient state organisations and bring in global competition. the 'nationalists' were in fact against him, he was continually troubled by resistence to his efforts to liberalise industry (remember EGAT?), and the entrenched bureaucratic elite were no doubt behind the movement against him. the greatest irony is that the piece of law which his government passed to enable foreign firms to increase their stake in the telecommunications sector to 49% was what finally led to the protests that led to his ouster. if nationalist notions were suited to promote any agenda, i'm sure he would have used it, but in reality he was more driven by the economic bottom line and the imperatives of global competition. he was pushing to open up infrastructure tenders to international firms, financed through private securitisation, he sought to modernise and restructure the logistics sector, recognising the potential to increase export competitiveness. and economic data shows they were successful, he greatly increased tax receipts and improved tax adminstration to produce consistent years of govt surplus. poverty levels in thailand almost halved during his tenure. but i digress..

Nice pitch. But I don't really buy it. Selling off how much of PTT, EGAT and other national state owned enterprises would liberalise industry? What...a few scraps and that makes a difference????

I just don't see it - he sold off enough to raise some cash, to generate some monster profits for the insiders who could get hold of stock, but not enough to give up national control of any of these assets. TOT/CAT were set up to ensure non competition with his own empire rather than any increase in competitiveness.

AFAIK with regards to foreign ownership the 49% rule was in place when he was elected; he dropped it to 25% and then raised it back up to 49% again. And are you suggesting that the Shin deal using nominees was 49% foreign owned, when Temasak themselves early on were claiming 96% ownership? No need to use DTAC as a defense, the 'well my friend was speeding and he was't caught so how come i am' defense doesn't wash when you are speeding and it doesn't wash here.

That said, PTT have done a great job since listing and EGAT SHOULD be sold off. The sentiment is right, but the way it was done was so ridiculously corrupt as to undo the entire reason for selling off to create level playing fields/ increase competitiveness etc etc. As an energy expert in a former life, to liberalise the energy market requires regulation of natural monopolies, clear policy for assets sharing, a developed trading market for power producers and reasonably skilled energy retailers. It requires a clear understanding of costs, ROI and other basic business concepts, not one of which was discussed when they were ready to sell off a state owned asset at a bargain price to (presumably) themselves as happened with PTT.

Or am i too doubting, and in fact people were just unlucky in not being able to obtain PTT stocks at 35b IIRC oversubscribed within 2 seconds of going on market?????!

His attempts to improve the civil service and corporatise were only really apparent in the first 18 months of TRT and were admirable. Yet, PPP didn't get voted in for any of that, because that is not what earns votes.

[pampal]

A brave man !! I don't think so. He wouldn't have come back in a million years if he wasn't sure the deck was already stacked in his favour. To think he'd risk a long term in jail by coming back here is foolish thinking in my view.

Exactly

[sriracha john]

Financial Times interview transcript: Thaksin Shinawatra

Amy Kazmin, the FT’s South-East Asia Correspondent, interviewed Thaksin Shinawatra, Thailand’s former prime minister, in Bangkok on Monday, March 3, 2008. Below is an edited transcript of their conversation:

FINANCIAL TIMES: Many people are now looking at Thailand and wondering what is going to happen next. The Thai economy has really seemed to struggle over the last two years. What do you think Thailand needs to do now to revive the economy and restore foreign investor confidence?

THAKSIN SHINAWATRA: Confidence is the key. It’s quite difficult after a coup d’etat, the political uncertainty is going to be a big question for the investor, especially [the] foreign investor [who knows] little about the nature of Thai politics. That will be a big obstacle for bringing back confidence. *Apparently he missed the timeline of the question*

FT: Even now?

TS: Even now. We still need to do a lot more. When you go out for [a] road show, the investor will ask the question of political stability. We have to prove ourselves. The Thai has to help each other to bring back real reconciliation. And also, the local press especially, we have to present the news in a more constructive way. If the local press is not constructive how will the foreign press be constructive? They are just following what is happening in the local press.

FT: What do you mean by constructive?

TS: Constructive – it means [bringing] back the reconciliation, trying to avoid small things about having conflict among the Thai. That will create a picture of political stability, and then the confidence will be there. That is the prerequisite to bring back economic confidence. I have been travelling a lot and have met with a lot of investors world wide. And the question of political stability is the prerequisite for economic confidence.

FT: We’ll come back to that, but in terms of economic policy specifically, what do you think needs to be done?

TS: We have to take the opportunities of a strong baht and weaker dollar to import capital goods and machinery to upgrade our production. We have been using old technology for many years. So it is now the time to invest. The government has to facilitate the import of more of the capital goods and machinery to upgrade our production quality. That is what we should do now, not just complain about [a] strong baht and weaker dollar. …We are an export-led growth economy. [The] domestic economy is not that [developed] yet, [domestic] consumption is not that much yet. We import so little, we have [a trade] surplus [and] it adds to the stronger baht. We have to take this opportunity to import and invest. Especially in the mega-projects. It’s time to invest now. We have quite healthy reserves. We should invest now.

FT: How well positioned do you think Thailand is, as an export-oriented economy, now to ride out a US economic slowdown?

TS: Luckily, during my administration we diversified the market, we diversified the [range] of products that we export. But the US is still our major market. [An] economic slowdown in [the] US will definitely affect [us]. But luckily the products we export to US markets, are the ‘basic need’ products, so we should be able to survive. Another thing we have to be careful [of] is that the privileges that we receive on our exports to the US should not be affected. … We also have to watch after the [uS] election how the new government will [pursue] free trade agreements [such as the one Thailand is eager to have].

FT: Are you concerned that some of the privileges Thai exports enjoy could be revoked because of Thailand’s compulsory licensing of US pharmaceutical products?

TS: We have to be careful on every move. The US government is really pushed by the private sector. Some big private sector is [the] pharmaceutical [industry] they are a big association pushing the US government a lot. … For compulsory licensing, we have to be very cautious. For compulsory, it means it’s really necessary, not just usual. So we have to be very careful how we move on that.

FT: How much damage do you think was done to the Thai economy by the last two years of political turbulence?

TS: Confidence is very expensive economically. When it’s gone it will cost a lot of money to bring it back – and time, not just money. People don’t understand well enough the worth of confidence.

FT: What can be done to bring back confidence in Thailand?

TS: We have to start with the consumer confidence. You have to inject the money down to the grassroots levels, so their spending will start to turn. When consumer confidence starts, we will have to bring local investor confidence – then the foreign investor will come. Tourism, or service industry, is one of the main income streams, and we have to revive it.

FT: You don’t think just the fact that Thailand has had an election and installed an elected government is enough?

TS: Not enough! Not enough! Not enough!

FT: [Finance Minister] Surapong Suebwonglee has said he would like you to advise him on the economy, and you clearly have strong ideas about what needs to be done about the economy. ...

TS: You know, giving advice – it may create obligation on both sides. … I am more senior to him. If I give advice and he [doesn’t] take my advice, I will feel bad. And if he didn’t take my advice, he will feel bad as well. Why don’t I be a lecturer instead of advisor? I can be a lecturer not just for him, but for the investors, or the business sector, or the economic teams of the government. If they think I can give some lecture about the global economy, and how its’ linked to the Thai economy, those things, I can give the lecture. After I give the lecture there is no obligation on both sides. They don’t have to do whatever I [say], they can think on their own and mix their ideas.

FT: So are you turning down his request to be an advisor?

TS: I don’t think I should be. I don’t want to get involved in politics. When I don’t want to get involved in politics – why should I take the advisory position?

FT: You talked about the importance of political stability in a factor restoring confidence. How do you assess Thailand’s prospects for political stability?

TS: I think it will be better now. I have started to talk with my former opponents, especially military people, and they all now – especially myself, we forgive everything, we don’t feel any antagonism to others. …. I forgive everyone – and I am not involved in politics. So don’t worry about me. And I would ask the press – don’t worry about where I am going, what I am doing. I am not a public figure any more.

FT: Many people were very shocked at the September 2006 military coup because they thought that Thailand had put the era of military coup behind it. Do you feel now that there is a risk of military coup in the future? Or do you think this was the last coup?

TS: I believe always that democracy is the best. There should not be any hiccup in democracy development in any country. When you start the democratic process, you should continue until it matures. If you take it back, it’s difficult to bring back confidence. During my administration, I believe there should not be any coup. But still it can happen. So Thailand is different. When there is a coup it is not that bad in terms of the impact both domestically and internationally. Even if we have a coup, the Thai monarchy is very strong, very well respected domestically and internationally. So that is different than other countries. We have some impact definitely but it’s not that much when compared with other countries. It’s difficult to predict there will be no coup in the future. But I cannot think about the near future. It might be later on. But it will be quite many years, not now.

FT: Why do you feel it is unlikely to happen now? Some of your political allies are concerned that there is still a risk...

TS: The country is quite fragile now.

FT: Fragile?

TS: If you were to have another coup, it will cost the country too much. …If it were to be a near future coup, the country is still very fragile. … That is dangerous…

FT: Do you think the military has learned any lessons from this coup?

TS: What [do you] mean by military? Military means the whole group of soldiers. … It [did] not really benefit the military. …Subordinates just [did] whatever their boss said. It depends on the top people – a few of them.

FT: And those who led this coup?

TS: Some have retired; some are about to retire. So they will enjoy their lives with their families.

FT: Do you think the balance of power between civilian politicians and the military has changed as a result of the coup?

TS: No. This constitution… has to be changed. Otherwise the respect of the people’s rights is not there. You don’t regard democracy as the people power. …The constitution is like the plan to build a house. Before you build a good house, you have to have a good plan. The good plan should start with the wish of the tenants who are going to live there. You have to ask them, talk to them. What do they want? How many bedrooms? How many bathrooms? En suite or not en suite? You have to talk to them. And secondly, you have to have a professional architect. But this [constitution was not done by] a professional architect. [They wrote] a plan without asking the tenant – the owner of the house.

FT: This constitution does give the military greater power than in the 1997 constitution, when the military was clearly under civilian control, doesn’t it?

TS: If this parliament does not do anything to amend this constitution, I think the whole parliament is not really faithful to their people. They come from them as democracy – they have to amend this constitution.

FT: Are there specific things you think need to be amended?

TS: So many things. .... The major one is the respect of the people’s power. You form a company – shareholders are supposed to have the most power. ... Now the people have less power, the structure is wrong. …Those key people who were involved in drafting the constitution are not the democratic men. When the non-professional architects write a plan without asking the owner, when the house is finished, its not the house that you want to live in.

FT: You say are you are out of politics, and don’t want to be politically active any more. But many Thai voters definitely associate the People’s Power Party with you, and they voted for the PPP because they thought it would be voting for you. So what responsibility do you feel for the successful performance for the PPP government?

TS: If you remember on the day that they dissolved the Thai Rak Thai party, I wrote a letter to the people, and I urged the former TRT politicians to pack together and continue their political work for the benefit of the country and the people. They did whatever I told them to do. [so] I felt obliged. … They wanted me to support them because they said the people still loved me and [they] wanted me to support them. So I supported [them]….But [in] a personal capacity – not anything about politics. They wanted to continue the TRT ideology, so I felt obliged to support them.

FT: And now that they are in power don’t you still feel some obligation to support them?

TS: No, it’s finished. It’s their new party, new ideology. There might be some root from Thai Rak Thai. But they have new leaders, new executive board, new Cabinet. I am not involved. ... If you need me to give a lecture on my experience during my administration, or my experience after being ousted and touring around the world, I can do it.

FT: But what about voters who voted for the PPP thinking that they were somehow voting for you?

TS: Voters voted for the PPP because I had been bullied too much, and they [didn’t] believe one man can be that bad – [that] the man that they had respected and loved can be that bad. ... They just wanted to give me some justice, that’s it.

FT: You don’t feel that you have some obligation to help the government?

TS: If I were to help the government, I’d probably create more problems than Unity of command is very important. The prime minister, and the leader is there. Wherever the formal structure has been superseded by the informal structure, that will be bad for that organisation to run perfectly. …I will concentrate on fighting my court case.

FT: You picked Samak [sundaravej, the prime minister] and asked him to lead the PPP. How much contact do you have with him?

TS: Seldom, just as a good friend.

FT: The military froze your family’s $1.9bn in profits from the Shin Corp sale. But so far there has been no case brought in connection with that deal. What do you see as the prospects for getting that money back?

TS: It’s really unlawful [what they did.] But under [a] dictatorship you can do anything you want. That might be the purpose of preventing me from using my money to help the PPP in the election. Another thing is they don’t want me to move around. But its very unlawful, and we will file a case definitely [seeking the return of the assets].

FT: Do you feel confident you will get it back?

TS: It’s the asset we own before we enter politics! In 1994, when I voluntarily declared my assets, [shin Corp] was there.

FT: Do you ever regret deciding to sell Shin Corp at the time you did?

TS: It belonged to my children. ... They may want cash for some other business; it’s their right to sell it. We already gave it to them.

FT: Maybe I should rephrase and ask you, do regret that your children sold Shin Corp at the time that they did?

TS: You know, in our family, we are always looking ahead, looking forward. Things in the back are just the lesson.

FT: When you do look back at your tenure in power, many people put their trust in you, but a lot of them, over time, turned away. Do you have any regrets from your tenure in office?

TS: No [elected Thai prime minister] has ever stayed in office continuously as long as myself. And when you stay long enough you make decisions every day. Some decisions this group likes, or does not like. It may affect some groups. In my case, I tried to build the country from the foundation, from the grassroots. But those on the top, they always enjoy the benefit of weak government. ... They never build anything basic or [lay] foundations. But we want to stay longer to build the whole nation from the foundations [up]. They may think, ‘when are you going to come to me? Not yet.’ So they may not like it. But actually when the foundation is strong, the top will be very, very strong. But they cannot wait.

FT: Looking forward, what are your plans?

TS: I have Manchester City, and have the Thaicom Foundation, and I might be chairman of the [already established] Shinawatra University.

FT: Are you able to leave the country?

TS: I can just ask the permission from the court. ... I [would not run away] from the case. I could not come [back to Thailand before last week] because I did not want to create turmoil in the country, and the court knows that. [but once] I come, I will obey whatever the court said.

- The Financial Times

[Payboy]

This post from Interman's Student...

I'm not really like him but I'm not hate him.. I think he made Thailand economic better than before.

He used tax money from Thai people in education, prove 3 provinces in south of Thailand, and etc.

But anti people look at him in one side, they said that Thaksin cheat Thailand, but he make Thailand

economic better, he cheat but we also rich or get better, i don't know why they must anti him.

They don't want him to be a prime minister, so he do, but they still anti him. He come back to Thailand

to prove his fault, al so they ready to anti him again and agian

Do they want to made Thailand like a Joker?

are you a phd student by any chance?

Playboy, ease up, I'm really pleased to see some Thai students joining there forum... to Interman, great to see your posts, keep them comming, the more young educated Thai's we have posting views here the better we can learn about this great country, Thai culture and beautiful Thai people...........

oops - my bad! i seem to have scared away tv's only educated thai - back to the school library i hope

[sriracha john]

Safe and secure?

Security for the former PM is tight and he is guarded around the clock amid fears for his safety, reports Surasak Tumcharoen. One of the reasons deposed PM Thaksin gave for deciding to return home after 17 months of self-imposed exile was homesickness. He said on the day he returned that there was nowhere in the world that he and his family feel happy like in Thailand. But is he really happy? Since his return, Thaksin has been guarded by a large security force and has to keep his whereabouts secret amid fears of being assassinated. Security for Thaksin, who has repeatedly claimed he has washed his hands of politics and says he prefers to live and die in his motherland, has remained tight and unrelenting since the possibility of the former PM being assassinated could not be ruled out, according to one of his close aides. Hundreds of riot police, in uniform and plain clothes, have been on watch around the places Thaksin has visited. They are on the lookout for possible assailants, including snipers hiding on rooftops or taking aim through windows in buildings. In addition to these "official" police units, dozens of plain clothes police and military officers have been working 24 hours a day to form an inner ring of bodyguards around the former PM. Thaksin and his family chose not to stay at their residence, which is said to be under renovation. But it is widely understood in security circles that the house was not considered 100% safe for the ex-premier. On the 35th floor of the Penisula hotel, bodyguards took turns guarding Thaksin around the clock while his wife Potjaman and their three children stayed on the 33rd and 34th floors. They booked a dozen Grand Deluxe Suite rooms with each costing up to 160,000 baht per night. The entire hotel area was off-limits to the press and other outsiders who did not look like foreign guests. Thaksin quietly checked out of the Peninsula Hotel on Saturday morning and headed for an undisclosed destination accompanied by his bodyguards. He is believed to be staying at either a safe house in a classy part of the Sathorn area or at another house owned by a little-known relative. He had been scheduled to play golf with pretty singer Saranrat "Lydia" Wisuthithada, at a course in the Bang Bor area of Samut Prakan, but Thaksin was forced to call it off after his security men spotted an army of reporters and photographers at the venue.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/04Mar2008_news24.php

[plachon]

Safe and secure?

Security for the former PM is tight and he is guarded around the clock amid fears for his safety, reports Surasak Tumcharoen. One of the reasons deposed PM Thaksin gave for deciding to return home after 17 months of self-imposed exile was homesickness. He said on the day he returned that there was nowhere in the world that he and his family feel happy like in Thailand. But is he really happy? Since his return, Thaksin has been guarded by a large security force and has to keep his whereabouts secret amid fears of being assassinated. Security for Thaksin, who has repeatedly claimed he has washed his hands of politics and says he prefers to live and die in his motherland, has remained tight and unrelenting since the possibility of the former PM being assassinated could not be ruled out, according to one of his close aides. Hundreds of riot police, in uniform and plain clothes, have been on watch around the places Thaksin has visited. They are on the lookout for possible assailants, including snipers hiding on rooftops or taking aim through windows in buildings. In addition to these "official" police units, dozens of plain clothes police and military officers have been working 24 hours a day to form an inner ring of bodyguards around the former PM. Thaksin and his family chose not to stay at their residence, which is said to be under renovation. But it is widely understood in security circles that the house was not considered 100% safe for the ex-premier. On the 35th floor of the Penisula hotel, bodyguards took turns guarding Thaksin around the clock while his wife Potjaman and their three children stayed on the 33rd and 34th floors. They booked a dozen Grand Deluxe Suite rooms with each costing up to 160,000 baht per night. The entire hotel area was off-limits to the press and other outsiders who did not look like foreign guests. Thaksin quietly checked out of the Peninsula Hotel on Saturday morning and headed for an undisclosed destination accompanied by his bodyguards. He is believed to be staying at either a safe house in a classy part of the Sathorn area or at another house owned by a little-known relative. He had been scheduled to play golf with pretty singer Saranrat "Lydia" Wisuthithada, at a course in the Bang Bor area of Samut Prakan, but Thaksin was forced to call it off after his security men spotted an army of reporters and photographers at the venue.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/04Mar2008_news24.php

Oh, what a shame. I guess he'll just have to invite Lydia for a "game of golf" at his safehouse and encourage Pokemon to go get her hair done, while he unsheaths his mashie niblick for a quick round. And just hope Sonny Jim doesn't get jealous of Paw getting his club and balls wiped down by the "pretty singer" he used to date.