ABOUT Politics
Strong public showings from Saksayam and Mananya raise coalition party’s profile Thaksin said not to favour Khunying Sudarat’s plan to field city governor candidate
FFP’s popularity among young bolstered by army chief’s recent public attack
A Bhumjaithai PM in waiting?
The Bhumjaithai Party has been so successful at grabbing headline space and scoring political points that some critics are now wondering what further ambitions it might have.
The party has been dubbed a “publicity machine” for attracting news coverage on a daily basis over the past few weeks.
Bhumjaithai, the third-largest party in the government led by the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), commands the Public Health and Transport ministries and has secured the seat of deputy agriculture minister.
Observers agree that the party has managed to turn heads with its handling of highprofile national issues under its ministerial watch.
Bhumjaithai never seems to run out of contentious policies to roll out. Soon after the March 24 general election, it vowed to make good on its poll promise to broaden the use of marijuana for research as well as the heavily controlled manufacturing of medicinal drugs.
Then the party pulled out all the stops in vetting large-scale infrastructure projects under the Transport Ministry headed by Bhumjaithai’s key man Saksayam Chidchob, who is also the younger brother of Newin Chidchob, the party strongman.
The ministry oversees rail plans worth hundreds of billions of baht, including the project for a high-speed line to connect the country’s three main airports — Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and U-Tapao.
Mr Saksayam recently shrugged off criticism from Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group, which complained the government was not taking its share of the risk for the 224-billionbaht project.
He insisted the ministry had followed the legal framework and the consortium must bear the entire risk.
Uncertainty surrounding the project was finally dispelled when it was confirmed the consortium would ink the contract as scheduled on Oct 25.
Soon after the high-speed train saga ended, Bhumjaithai ran into yet another stumbling block, this time involving the hot potato surrounding the recommended ban on paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos, which are toxic but widely used farm chemicals.
However, Mananya Thaiset, the deputy agriculture minister, pledged publicly to overcome any political and regulatory barriers to getting the ban implemented. A four-party meeting chaired by Ms Mananya resolved to recommend an outright ban on the three chemicals.
This week, Agriculture Minister Chalermchai Sri-on ordered that the ban recommendation be forwarded to the industry permanent secretary, who chairs the National Hazardous Substances Committee (NHSC), which has final authority on the matter.
Ms Mananya’s vow to push for an outright ban immediately triggered a chorus of approval from staff at hospitals in the Northeast, who placed signs outside their wards in support of the deputy minister’s line.
Political observers believe Bhumjaithai has made sizeable inroads into the government’s political profile, eclipsing even the ruling PPRP.
If Bhumjaithai continues to grow in popularity, they add, it stands to glean more MPs in the next election and possibly secure its leader, Anutin Charnvirakul, the chance of heading a future government.
Pheu Thai plots Bangkok tactics
Considering the result of the March 24 election in which the Pheu Thai Party won about 600,000 votes in Bangkok, some political observers now seriously rate its chances of winning the Bangkok governor race expected to take place early next year.
The Pheu Thai Party has yet to take home the trophy in the capital despite landslide victories in national polls.
Former transport minister Chadchart Sittipunt was widely seen as a strong candidate to represent the party until he recently announced he would contest the gubernatorial election as an independent candidate.
Mr Chadchart has said if he becomes governor he will have to work with all sides, and that seeking cross-floor support would be easier as an independent rather than a party-aligned candidate.
It is believed Mr Chadchart would prefer Pheu Thai to stay out of the governor race to avoid splitting his vote. His plan is also said to have received the nod from ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra who still commands deep respect among the Pheu Thai ranks.
However, there are some Pheu Thai members who believe the party should not sit this election out. Led by Surachai Tienthong, they have called on the party to select a candidate to run in the contest.
Mr Surachai’s group insists it harbours no personal grudges toward Mr Chadchart. But as the party will be contesting the Bangkok city council elections, it needs a frontman for the local poll campaign and no one is more suitable for the role than a governor candidate.
According to political observers, the group’s argument makes political sense, even though it may or may not be related to Pheu Thai chief strategist Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan’s visit to Dubai last weekend.
The purpose of Khunying Sudarat’s trip is widely thought to have been to convince Thaksin that the party should field a candidate.
It is reported that Thaksin, while being open to Khunying Sudarat’s reasons, stood firm in his belief that under the current political circumstances it is better for the party to opt out of the contest.
According to a source in the Pheu Thai, Khunying Sudarat left Dubai feeling less than upbeat. She is reportedly frustrated by Mr Chadchart’s decision to run as an independent candidate.
For some observers, no matter what Mr Chadchart says to justify his decision, it is still seen by some as an attempt to distance himself from the Pheu Thai — the party that handed him the post of transport minister under the Yingluck Shinawatra government — so he can capture votes from those looking for someone with no political affiliations.
Observers have been quick to point out the irony of Mr Chadchart wanting party supporters to vote for him but not wanting to project himself as a party-aligned candidate.
However, this could prove to be a wise political move in the current political climate in which the governor election will be fiercely contested by candidates from newcomers like the Palang Pracharath Party and the Future Forward Party as well as the old-timer Democrat Party, which badly needs a win as a consolation prize in the wake of its humiliating defeat in the general election.
Leftist lecture polemic backfires
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha leapt to the defence of army chief Apirat Kongsompong in the wake of the latter’s recent lecture during which he branded some academics and politicians as “far-left” and people with implanted “communist chips”.
After studying the details of Gen Apirat’s speech, Gen Prayut said that the gist of the message was that the army chief wanted to encourage a sense of patriotism, provide a historical background of the country and offer his take on solving the southern insurgency.
“I don’t want any conflict to arise and obstruct the implementation of policies to
steer the country forward ... It should be left to the audience to exercise their discretion,” said Gen Prayut, who also serves as defence minister.
Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon also declined to comment when critics stepped up calls for Gen Apirat to be sacked as army chief over the issue. Gen Prawit would only say: “Everyone has good intentions for the country.”
During last Friday’s lecture on national security at the Royal Thai Army Headquarters, Gen Apirat accused some politicians, academics and “old communist elements” of using “hybrid warfare” to undermine the country and the monarchy. Gen Apirat alleged that collusion was at play between unidentified “communist” politicians and “extreme left” academics who had studied abroad.
He claimed some communist elements still have ideas to turn Thailand towards communism. Gen Apirat added they were using social media to spread “propaganda” and fake news.
Even though Gen Apirat did not name names during the lecture, it was widely understood that he was taking aim at the Future Forward Party (FFP), prompting its leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit and secretary-general Piyabutr Saengkanokkul to hit back at the army chief the following day, saying Gen Apirat’s comments would only spur social divisions and instigate hatred.
However, the opposition bloc has seen the plus side and believes it can turn the army chief’s harsh criticism to its advantage, according to a source from the opposition.
During his speech, Gen Apirat accused those academics and politicians of using social media to brainwash young people. Such remarks would further cement the young people’s already strong allegiance to the FFP, the source said.
Gen Apirat has effectively pushed the young further toward the FFP, the source said.
The army’s lashing of the FFP has backfired. Instead of causing damage to the FFP, which is currently reeling from several legal cases against its leader, it turns out that his remarks have helped to boost the party’s popularity, the source said.
Following the army chief’s remarks, FFP deputy leader Lt Gen Pongsakorn Rodchomphu, who chairs a House committee on state security, border affairs, national strategy and reform, sent a letter to invite Gen Apirat to discuss the matter on Monday.
Lt Gen Pongsakorn said that the lecture given by Gen Apirat had “a significant bearing” as it drew strong reaction from netizens on social media. He said hoped that Gen Apirat would cooperate and accept the invitation.