DPM Somkid says nothing stays the same in politics

[webfact]

DPM Somkid says nothing stays the same in politics



BANGKOK, 29 July 2016 (NNT) - Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak said in his speech during the 63rd anniversary celebration for Siamrath Newspaper, that nothing stays the same in politics.

Speaking at the celebration, Dr. Somkid urged everyone to realize that every country has gone through different stages of political development before arriving at their current state of affairs.

The Deputy Premier also described different types of democracies he found in a book called ‘Why Nation Fails’, in which he gave four examples of how democracy developed into the contemporary modes of government of several countries.

He mentioned the prolonged struggles for democracy in England, as well as the democracy that did not satisfy the people's needs in Argentina, which eventually led to a military coup. When the coup also failed to meet the needs of its people, democracy was then restored.

He also cited Singapore, where the ruling People’s Action Party, has administrated the country for more than 50 years. Despite elections, most Singaporeans have stood by the dominant political faction. The Deputy Premier also mentioned that there are places such as South Africa, where people in power will do anything to prevent democracy.

As for the political situation in Thailand, Dr. Somkid wanted Thai people to learn to co-exist regardless of the outcome of the constitutional referendum and their political opinions, in order for the country to survive.

-- NNT 2016-07-29

[Brer Fox]

Deputy PM Somkid seems quite gabby and speaks warmly and cosily about democracy and the path to achieving a country's desired political development. He cites the UK and Argentina as an examples of hard won democracies.

But at the end he shows his true values by doing a switcheroo and offers up Singapore as a success story for single party domination.

[LannaGuy]

"prolonged struggles for democracy in England"? what "prolonged struggles"? this guy loved working for Thaksin, now works for Prayut, and seemingly will work for anyone who pays the piper

[cockatoowho]

A pity his babble can't be translated into simple intelligible English so we can understand what he is trying to emphasise. The heading should have read DPM Somkid says nothing stays the same in politics.

[nausea]

Well, I must be stupid, cos what he said made sense to me.

[thai3]

Some things do stay the same in politics especaily the lies, the corruption and the incompetence, they never seems to go away

Edited July 29, 2016 by thai3

[GeorgesAbitbol]

escept corruption and plutocarcy

[baboon]

escept corruption and plutocarcy

And coups...

[Hawk]

"DPM Somkid says nothing stays the same in politics"

Or in anything else, so why do the military keep waffling on about a 20 year roadmap?

[waldroj]

Warning - this goose is prone to rambling, as this post, and his other piece of crap earlier today (http://news.thaivisa.com/thailand/somkid-government-has-done-more-for-the-poor-than-its-predecessors-did-in-5-years/149993/) demonstrate.

He wants Thai people to learn to co-exist regardless of the outcome of the constitutional referendum and their political opinions - sorry Somkid, but that ain't going to happen under the current usurpers (see below)!

An academic, with a PhD in marketing from the Kellogg School of Management at the private Northwestern University in Illinois. And, for all you Thaksin-haters out there, he was a co-founder and leader of TRT, and has been called "the man behind Thaksinomics", masterminding the populist policies that helped propel TRT to its landslide election victory in 2001 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somkid_Jatusripitak).

As for the title of the text referenced by this book worm - it is actually "Why Nations Fail" - you can read it for yourself at https://www.google.co.th/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0ahUKEwj76cSN35jOAhVEN48KHfrlB4sQFghJMAc&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnorayr.am%2Fcollections%2Fbooks%2FWhy-Nations-Fail-Daron-Acemoglu.pdf&usg=AFQjCNGrI-4lcLSH7yMvCYDpNwNzzxVIfw&cad=rja!

.

It is quite an interesting read! One passage on p.55 that especially appeals to me is:

...it is the political institutions of a nation that determine the ability of citizens to control politicians and influence how they behave. This in turn determines whether politicians are agents of the citizens,
albeit imperfect, or are able to abuse the power entrusted to them, or that they have usurped, to amass their own fortunes and to pursue their own agendas, ones detrimental to those of the citizens...

[ChrisY1]

Somkid is not a politician......he's working for the junta......he's playing to their tune just now......but possibly one day, he'll change sides and try and become an elected official!

[robblok]

escept corruption and plutocarcy

And coups...

No corruption no coups... whole reason there are coups is because its profitable to be in government. As long as that does not change there will never be any peace here.

[Alive]

escept corruption and plutocarcy

And coups...

No corruption no coups... whole reason there are coups is because its profitable to be in government. As long as that does not change there will never be any peace here.

Hardly. The abuse (corruption) is built into Thailand's military-written constitution. It empowers certain people and groups over the masses and from that privilege comes trickle-down privileges to the elite and connected in Thailand. Fix the constitution to treat all people equally under the law and enforce that law and that's the end of most of it. The corruption that exists is not the reason for the coups. It is the result of treating most of the people as second-class citizens through the constitutions. It's the same groups taking power to keep their power and privileges over the majority of Thais.

[NongKhaiKid]

escept corruption and plutocarcy

And coups...

One constant and always the same situation here is the military sitting on the political sidelines preparing to intervene again.

[Srikcir]

Warning - this goose is prone to rambling, as this post, and his other piece of crap earlier today (http://news.thaivisa.com/thailand/somkid-government-has-done-more-for-the-poor-than-its-predecessors-did-in-5-years/149993/) demonstrate.

He wants Thai people to learn to co-exist regardless of the outcome of the constitutional referendum and their political opinions - sorry Somkid, but that ain't going to happen under the current usurpers (see below)!

An academic, with a PhD in marketing from the Kellogg School of Management at the private Northwestern University in Illinois. And, for all you Thaksin-haters out there, he was a co-founder and leader of TRT, and has been called "the man behind Thaksinomics", masterminding the populist policies that helped propel TRT to its landslide election victory in 2001 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somkid_Jatusripitak).

As for the title of the text referenced by this book worm - it is actually "Why Nations Fail" - you can read it for yourself at https://www.google.co.th/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0ahUKEwj76cSN35jOAhVEN48KHfrlB4sQFghJMAc&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnorayr.am%2Fcollections%2Fbooks%2FWhy-Nations-Fail-Daron-Acemoglu.pdf&usg=AFQjCNGrI-4lcLSH7yMvCYDpNwNzzxVIfw&cad=rja!

book.png.

It is quite an interesting read! One passage on p.55 that especially appeals to me is:

...it is the political institutions of a nation that determine the ability of citizens to control politicians and influence how they behave. This in turn determines whether politicians are agents of the citizens,

albeit imperfect, or are able to abuse the power entrusted to them, or that they have usurped, to amass their own fortunes and to pursue their own agendas, ones detrimental to those of the citizens...

it is the political institutions of a nation that determine the ability of citizens to control politicians and influence how they behave.

As Prayut so often points out, the Thai military is not a political institution. And correctly so.

Military organizations in General are not themselves democratic institutions - military chain of command does not foster equality and participatory decision making. Thus, the Thai military repeatedly deprives the Thai citizens of political control through coups, constitution rewrites and reshuffle of Independent Organization membership in order to preserve its own minority agenda and not citizens' plurality for the nation.

The Thai military believes that Thai citizens cannot be trusted with their soverneignty. For that reason in part the Thai military has no loyalty to the Thai plurality, even to the people's constitutions which the military repeatedly abolishes.

[robblok]

escept corruption and plutocarcy

And coups...

No corruption no coups... whole reason there are coups is because its profitable to be in government. As long as that does not change there will never be any peace here.

Hardly. The abuse (corruption) is built into Thailand's military-written constitution. It empowers certain people and groups over the masses and from that privilege comes trickle-down privileges to the elite and connected in Thailand. Fix the constitution to treat all people equally under the law and enforce that law and that's the end of most of it. The corruption that exists is not the reason for the coups. It is the result of treating most of the people as second-class citizens through the constitutions. It's the same groups taking power to keep their power and privileges over the majority of Thais.

I disagree.. no constitution will help. As long as there is so much corruption and money to be made once your in politics (just look at how Thaksin got filthy rich by changing laws and such) there will never be peace here. Everyone wants to be in power to get rich fast. Fix that.. (and there have been other constitutions and none fixed this)

[Caveat Emptor]

One thing that never changes is the names of the politicians.

Old soldiers are said to simply fade away but old politicians don't even do that.

[waldroj]

Some of them (soldiers and politicians) seem to be Premanent!