Thai Govt Must Think Before Handing Out Posts

[webfact]

BURNING ISSUE

Govt must think before handing out posts

Piyanart Srivalo

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- For almost a year, the powers that be turned a blind eye to the antics of a certain deputy government spokesperson.

This might be because positions under this government are not handed out according to merit, but more as rewards from former PM Thaksin Shinawatra or as a quota apportioned to each coalition partner.

Obviously, no experience is necessary for any government position, including that of government spokesperson and the deputies. However, the biggest problem with handing out jobs like these is there is a clear lack of unity in the teams. Take the government spokesperson's team for instance. Two deputies, who are both from the ruling Pheu Thai Party, decided not to take orders from their direct boss, but instead chose to only listen to their mentors.

This insubordination was most apparent in Anusorn Iamsa-ard, who preferred to listen to red-shirt leaders like Jatuporn Promphan and Natthawut Saikua, before doing anything as deputy government spokesperson.

This might have been one of the reasons why his boss, Thitima Chaisaeng, stepped down from her post as government spokesperson. Since Anusorn formerly worked as a DJ at a red-shirt radio station, and had a large following, he thought he deserved to take over after Thitima. This expectation rose even further after Thitima was made deputy secretary to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, and Anusorn had to fill in as acting government spokesperson.

While the search for Thitima's successor was on, the premier ended up "failing" to communicate with her people. That's when the powers that be decided to appoint Suranand Vejjajiva as her personal secretary.

During the four months as acting government spokesperson, Anusorn's hopes to succeed Thitima were quashed because people could see that he was focusing more on his political aspirations instead of publicising the government's achievements. The other thing that worked against him was his "colourful" speaking style, which appeared no different from a rabblerouser on a red-shirt stage or a DJ on red-shirt radio.

"The prime minister was not really happy about Anusorn's work as a caretaker government spokesperson. On numerous occasions, complaints were made about how he did not provide information to the media, and Yingluck also became aware of the problems Anusorn was causing for the other spokespersons. However, she could not remove him because he represented the red shirts and getting rid of him would cause serious problems for the premier," a source close to Yingluck said.

This is when the prime minister decided to seek advice from her team, especially Suranand.

Professionals were brought in and they opened channels of communication between Yingluck and the public. Former television personality Sansanee Nakphong, who was also one of the 111 politicians whose five-year ban was recently lifted and had previously worked as a deputy government spokesperson, was brought on board and Anusorn was kept where he was - much to his discontent.

Sansanee said of her new job: "It didn’t take much time for me to decide to take up the position because the prime minister needs help and I will assist with what the government is doing. I will work as a loudspeaker for the government, fostering positive thoughts and keeping the public informed about the government's achievements."

Yet the problem of a certain deputy spokesperson remains.

"In the past, there was a lot of back-stabbing. It was a chronic problem in the government spokesperson team, and as long as this deputy continues, things will remain the same," a Pheu Thai source said.

Meanwhile, Pakdeeharm Himathongkham, the other deputy spokesperson who is also from the Pheu Thai Party, has decided to give Sansanee full backing, saying that she is capable of fighting all battles - be they outside the government or within their small team.

The third deputy government spokesperson - Chalitrat Chantrubaekkha from Chart Pattana Party - has decided to stay out of this tug of war.

-- The Nation 2012-06-14

[theblether]

'Thai government must think'.....

Come on, of course they think about it, they think about.....

Which pet politician they can put in as a mouthpiece.......

Who they can rely upon to get the most tea money out of........

Who they need to reward for some dodgy past deed.....

You get the idea, there's plenty of thought put in, just the wrong type!!

[TheGhostWithin]

"Obviously, no experience is necessary for any government position, including that of government spokesperson and the deputies." - Why not? I am a believer that leaders must absolutely know the ins and outs of the sector they are leading.

If kids at McDonalds can have degrees, then grown leaders of factions of the Thai population should be equally over-qualified for their roles. At least some solid background experience (e.g. a minister of agriculture that has an agricultural banking and/or farm improvement background) would improve the efficiency of the government. By doing what it has always done, the government is acknowledging that the world has changed and that there is a new demand for greater efficiency in the world. however yet again (as they did prior to the Asian financial crisis) they will hide behind their capital, currency pegs and culture to avoid black swan events.

Please learn from your past, to grow your future. Get those kids out of McDonalds and into Parliament.. job swap perhaps?

"Obviously, no experience is necessary for any government position, including that of government spokesperson and the deputies." - Why not? I am a believer that leaders must absolutely know the ins and outs of the sector they are leading.

If kids at McDonalds can have degrees, then grown leaders of factions of the Thai population should be equally over-qualified for their roles. At least some solid background experience (e.g. a minister of agriculture that has an agricultural banking and/or farm improvement background) would improve the efficiency of the government. By doing what it has always done, the government is acknowledging that the world has changed and that there is a new demand for greater efficiency in the world, though yet again (as they did prior to the Asian financial crisis) the government is hiding behind its’ capital, currency pegs and cultural differences to the global population to avoid black swan events. This has proven multiple times to be a failing strategy.

Please learn from your past, to grow your future. Get those kids out of McDonalds and into Parliament.. Job-swap perhaps?

Reason for editing: correcting grammatical error(s)

Reason for editing: correcting gramatical error(s)

Edited June 14, 2012 by TheGhostWithin

[theblether]

@TheGhostWithin, Billy Connelly said that the mere fact that anyone would want to be a politician should immediately bar them from being so.

Thailand is not alone in having rank incompetent politicians, in fact at least Thai politicians are a bit more up front about lining their pockets than the British one's.

New Duck House anyone? Moat cleaning service?

[Moruya]

This isn't a government. It's two packs of soi dogs

[waza]

The power struggle continues

[TheGhostWithin]

Theblether, I completely agree with you, simply put, "who will police the police" - at least in Thailand the army to some degree ensures that the government does not get completely bias or out of control, though seemed less stringent on the democrat government. The system is broken and needs fixing, as will be said time and time again when the next round of debt ceiling talks come up in the US.

There needs to be an independent body, which can veto any act of government by initiating referendums should the public deem it important enough (through some sort of polling perhaps?) with the results being binding on the act or decision being debated.

I guess, this would create more socialist governments, but we have to decide, do we want a socialist government, a right wing government, or are we satisfied with the current state of Thai (and global) politics which caters to the highest paying bidder?

[noitom]

Whatever happened to the case of that US blacklisted person that is the Trade Dev minister - Nalinee something?

[slapout]

Its beginning to look like to be in a responsible position in Thai government, you need to have been involved in a "close but not put in jail" activity

This and future governments may have to keep a " illegal activity forgivness" proposal ready for approval, in the wings, on a yearly basis.

[spidermike007]

For decades now, the Thai government has been an institution that has never accepted a meritocracy. It is all about who you know, and what you have done to help the powers that be either hold onto their power base, or establish power, as was the case with Yingbat. Does the tourism minister ( a post that is responsible for perhaps 13% of GDP) know anything about tourism? Does the communication minister know anything about building an effective 3G system? Does the transport minister (yes, the one caught with 1,000,0000,000 baht in his living room, who has not been arrested, or prosecuted) know anything about high speed rail? When a man has developed a line of shoe stores, and then it promoted to head a ministry, what can be expected? What about the education minister? Thailand was the 21st largest economy in the world 5 years ago. Today, it is 25th. Which direction do you think it is headed? With all of the ascendancy of ASEAN, and the other Asian neighbors making some of the right moves, where does Thailand expect to be in 10 or 20 years? How about in 30 years? The 47th largest economy in the world is what I predict.

[Bagwan]

@TheGhostWithin, Billy Connelly said that the mere fact that anyone would want to be a politician should immediately bar them from being so.

Thailand is not alone in having rank incompetent politicians, in fact at least Thai politicians are a bit more up front about lining their pockets than the British one's.

New Duck House anyone? Moat cleaning service?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-18435148

Dishonesty is a prerequisite for political office on a worldwide basis.

[lannarebirth]

For decades now, the Thai government has been an institution that has never accepted a meritocracy. It is all about who you know, and what you have done to help the powers that be either hold onto their power base, or establish power, as was the case with Yingbat. Does the tourism minister ( a post that is responsible for perhaps 13% of GDP) know anything about tourism? Does the communication minister know anything about building an effective 3G system? Does the transport minister (yes, the one caught with 1,000,0000,000 baht in his living room, who has not been arrested, or prosecuted) know anything about high speed rail? When a man has developed a line of shoe stores, and then it promoted to head a ministry, what can be expected? What about the education minister? Thailand was the 21st largest economy in the world 5 years ago. Today, it is 25th. Which direction do you think it is headed? With all of the ascendancy of ASEAN, and the other Asian neighbors making some of the right moves, where does Thailand expect to be in 10 or 20 years? How about in 30 years? The 47th largest economy in the world is what I predict.

Yingbat! I like it. In 30 years I expect Thailand to be a semi-autonomous canton of China. They're gonna move over Asia like a fungus.

[theblether]

@TheGhostWithin

To my mind the best democratic system is the Swiss system. They have had something like 300 referendums since 1945.

In effect nothing major can be done in Switzerland without consulting the electorate. This has the effect of nullifying the grandiose pretensions of politicians.

Swiss politicians need to keep it real. They need to win the arguments point by point. The problem with the UK and US systems is that the politicians gather too much power unto themselves. The electorate are an inconvenience that have to be bribed with ( often false ) promises every few years.

As for Thailand? Government by rats fighting sacks seems to be the system here, with the occasional intervention by a cat.

I think I prefer the Swiss system.

[12DrinkMore]

Please learn from your past, to grow your future. Get those kids out of McDonalds and into Parliament.. Job-swap perhaps?

Been there, tried that

http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-Working-at-McDonalds-Isnt-That-Bad&id=5255982

Wealthy parents often send their children to work in McDonalds in order to better understand those who are less fortunate than them, and to learn the value of money. A shining example of this is the Thailand's former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, who sent his 17 year old daughter to work at McDonalds in 2004.

[culicine]

This isn't a government. It's two packs of soi dogs

Not really - soi dogs in their pack don't turn on eachother

[Skywalker69]

Thai Government and "thinking" dosen´t go hand in hand.

[culicine]

Please learn from your past, to grow your future. Get those kids out of McDonalds and into Parliament.. Job-swap perhaps?

Been there, tried that

http://ezinearticles...-Bad&id=5255982

Wealthy parents often send their children to work in McDonalds in order to better understand those who are less fortunate than them, and to learn the value of money. A shining example of this is the Thailand's former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, who sent his 17 year old daughter to work at McDonalds in 2004.

If I recall she flipped a few burgers for the cameras then promptly left in a limo....

[bigbamboo]

Thai Government and "thinking" dosen´t go hand in hand.

I thought the arrangement was Thaksin does the thinking.... they don't.

[h90]

This isn't a government. It's two packs of soi dogs

Not really - soi dogs in their pack don't turn on eachother

they don't turn on each other. just some barking.....

[waza]

This isn't a government. It's two packs of soi dogs

Not really - soi dogs in their pack don't turn on eachother

they don't turn on each other. just some barking.....

and sniffing each others bums, thats why Yingluck wont go to Parliment without an armed guard

Edited June 14, 2012 by waza

[nurofiend]

Please learn from your past, to grow your future. Get those kids out of McDonalds and into Parliament.. Job-swap perhaps?

Been there, tried that

http://ezinearticles...-Bad&id=5255982

Wealthy parents often send their children to work in McDonalds in order to better understand those who are less fortunate than them, and to learn the value of money. A shining example of this is the Thailand's former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, who sent his 17 year old daughter to work at McDonalds in 2004.

and he himself worked in kfc and his ex-wife in burger king

they could have gone into the fast food racket

[Narratio]

"Obviously, no experience is necessary for any government position, including that of government spokesperson and the deputies."

The word "Obviously" is not something I would expect to see in this sentence. I would very much like to see the employment application form, it must be real simple.

[gand]

I was of the understanding that the posts were well thought out and given to those that paid the most?