A tough call awaits
The decisions that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has to make are often tough, but one he is facing now could put his administration on the line.
The dilemma stems from the latest spat between stalwarts in the ruling Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) and the government’s economic team led by Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak.
The simmering tension came to a head on Tuesday when Chaiwut Thamakamanusorn, a PPRP executive, verbalised his frustration with the economic team and suggested Mr Somkid pack up and leave the cabinet.
He also said he believed the next cabinet reshuffle would see the departure of not only Mr Somkid but other economic ministers including Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana and Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong.
Mr Uttama was replaced as PPRP leader and Mr Sontirat as the party secretary-general only last weekend at the party’s general assembly.
To add insult to injury, both men also lost their places on the party’s executive board.
Their supporters slammed the new party executives for betraying Mr Uttama and Mr Sontirat, who cofounded the PPRP and were credited with successfully cobbling together various political parties to form the coalition government.
A source in the PPRP said Mr Uttama and Mr Sontirat have been “rewarded” enough for having held the economic cabinet posts for more than a year under the stewardship of Mr Somkid.
Some PPRP insiders also rebuked Mr Uttama for being out of touch with party members and failing to take sufficient care of them during his time as leader.
Now that the new PPRP board has been elected with Mr Uttama replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon and Mr Sontirat by Anucha Nakasai, the executives are going in for the kill by setting their sights on the cabinet’s economic team.
“I think Mr Somkid should go,” Mr Chaiwut said, emerging from a PPRP meeting this week. He said several capable people were eager to join the economic team but were reluctant to step forward because Mr Somkid still headed it.
Mr Somkid must have picked up the vibe of hostility early, and it apparently touched a nerve. At a forum in Bangkok where he was invited to speak, the stoic deputy prime minister cut a commanding figure and declared that people in the team incapable of fulfilling their duties should know better than staying put.
On the other hand, individuals looking to replace them who are also inadequate for the jobs should stay away, Mr Somkid said.
Another highly placed source in the PPRP said Mr Somkid made the remarks secure in the knowledge that the party could not find a better alternative choice of economic minister.
Although Mr Somkid’s team may not have scored high on a report card of achievements in steering the country’s economy, at least the name of a possible contender for finance minister coming from the PPRP had hit a brick wall.
It was reported government
spokeswoman Narumon Pinyosinwat might be groomed for the coveted portfolio.
Adding weight to Mr Somkid’s confidence that his team might escape being purge in the next cabinet shake-up was Gen Prayut saying he was fairly satisfied with the performance of the current economic ministers.
It is speculated a reshuffle might happen after the passage of the budget bill for the 2021 fiscal year which starts in October.
The House debate of the bill is over and done with. The bill’s second and third readings are expected in
September. A political analyst said deciding who to keep and who to let go in the next cabinet reshuffle will be an extremely tough call for Gen Prayut.
Retaining the Somkid team may be a boon to the continuity of the government’s economic policies, which is more critical than ever as the country moves to kick-start the economy post-Covid 19 pandemic.
However, not replacing the team would turn up the political heat from the dissatisfied heavyweights in the PPRP and that might cost the government dearly in the long run, according to the analyst.