New Phuket Governor Announced

[webfact]

New Phuket governor announced

Phuket Gazette

Phayao Governor Maitree Intusut (pictured) has been appointed as the new Governor of Phuket, effective immediately. Photo: PR Dept

PHUKET: -- The Thai Cabinet has officially named former Phayao Governor Maitree Intusut as the new Governor of Phuket.

The Cabinet agreed to the proposed list of governor appointments and transfers for 19 provinces at a meeting today, two days after former Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha retired on Sunday.

Sommai Prijasilpa, Phuket’ senior vice-governor, has been filling in as Acting Governor in the meantime.

Governor Maitree, a master’s graduate in political science from Thammasat University, worked for 10 years for the National Security Council (NSC), first as a policy and planning analyst before moving upwards to become the NSC’s secretary-general, before taking up the position Chief Secretary for Secretariat of the Cabinet.

By 2003, he was posted to Phang Nga as vice governor for two years. He then served as vice governor in Nakhon Sri Thammarat in 2005, Lopburi in 2006, Sisaket in 2007, and back to Lopburi as vice governor in 2008.

He was promoted to Governor of Trang in 2009, where he served for two years, before being posted to Phayao.

The appointment by Cabinet is effective immediately.

The first working day for Governor Maitree as Phuket Governor has yet to be announced.

Source: http://www.phuketgaz...ticle18061.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2012-10-03

[jeroentak]

i dnt understand that these kind of positions are held most of the time for 1-2 years and than people

are shuffled around again. Such a job should be at least 3-5 years to see some impact. It is the same

with many other positions in the Thai government. Every few months a reshuffle. That is why nothing is achieved

most of the times and corruption is key !!!!

[Keesters]

Not sure why but I expected to find that he was related to the Shinawatra family.

[Keesters]

i dnt understand that these kind of positions are held most of the time for 1-2 years and than people

are shuffled around again. Such a job should be at least 3-5 years to see some impact. It is the same

with many other positions in the Thai government. Every few months a reshuffle. That is why nothing is achieved

most of the times and corruption is key !!!!

But in a democracy shouldn't the post of Governor be elected, by the people of the province, rather than appointed by central government.

[Arkady]

i dnt understand that these kind of positions are held most of the time for 1-2 years and than people

are shuffled around again. Such a job should be at least 3-5 years to see some impact. It is the same

with many other positions in the Thai government. Every few months a reshuffle. That is why nothing is achieved

most of the times and corruption is key !!!!

But in a democracy shouldn't the post of Governor be elected, by the people of the province, rather than appointed by central government.

Good point but Thailand preserves the system established under absolute monarchy of directly appointing governors from Bangkok. Before King Chulalongkorn introduced the system the provinces were governed by various noblemen as their own private fiefdoms. It took Chulalongkorn over 20 years to overcome the resistance of the nobles and complete the change which represented a major advance compared to the chaotic, and inconsistent provincial government that had proceeded it. Nowadays it is looking a little dated and perhaps in need of another reform. It now looks like a system of military governorship for an occupied country where people are appointed by Bangkok on the basis of connections and the benefits they can pass up the pipe to the bigwigs at the ministry and politicians. They get transferred around from province to province and there is no requirement to have even been to the province, let alone have any knowledge of the people there or be able to speak their languages and dialects.

Only Bangkok has an elected governor. Pattaya used to have an elected mayor but the system was scrapped due to excessive corruption or rather because the proceeds flowed into the wrong pockets. The limited democracy they now have in rural local administrations seems to be going the same way. More and more now has to be spent on vote buying and bussing villagers back home from Bangkok to vote. Obviously these electoral outlays can only be recouped by more and more graft in things like road building contracts that the local administrations are responsible for.

[steelepulse]

The good thing about the system is it gives the politicians an out on why nothing got accomplished during their term. " If only I had more time to get things accomplished that I said I was going to do during my first week here" blah blah blah.