Somyot ‘foot-dragging’ over Thaksin rank move
Policechief Somyot Poompunmuang is foot-dragging over whether fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra should be stripped of his police rank, Thai Post says.
Twice in a row, the national police chief has sent a report back to the panel considering the matter.
At first, he argued the panel’s resolution to strip Thaksin’s of his rank was incomplete because it was not endorsed by panel members.
Then, he claimed the resolution, which was unanimous, did not meet a legal requirement.
But Thai Post questioned the sincerity of Pol Gen Somyot, asserting the resolution of the panel led by Pol Gen Chaiya Siriamphankul, an adviser to the Royal National Police Office, is complete and meets the requirements stipulated in RNPO regulations.
According to the regulations, a police officer can be stripped of his rank if he is found guilty of corruption by a court; sentenced to jail by the court except for petty offences or offences committed through negligence; declared bankrupt by the court; committed gross disciplinary violations and dismissed; committed serious misconduct; or fled criminal charges.
In the case of Thaksin, Thai Post said the former prime minister was sentenced to two years imprisonment by the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office-Holders for his involvement in the Ratchadapisek land deal. The court also ordered the 33-rai plot of land and the 772 million baht payment seized. He fled before it could deliver judgement.
The panel cited RNPO regulations as the reason for stripping Thaksin of his rank, said Thai Post’s editorial which also accused the national police chief of “buying time” for not approving the panel’s resolution.
Put it to the people
Thepublic should decide whether the government should stay on for two years to finish the reforms, says Thai Rath columnist Mae Look Chan.
Since the issue was floated four days ago, the public is still divided with most businessmen and pro-government political groups backing reforms before polls, while most politicians and academics are against the military regime prolonging its stay in power.
The public has yet to say what it wants, which is why Mae Look Chan proposes the holding of a referendum for the people to decide.
The referendum is the safest way out of this contentious issue except for one drawback — that is the referendum move was driven by National Reform Council member Paiboon Nititawan.
Meanwhile, Mud Lek points out in his commentary in Thai Rath that whether Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha should stay on for two or more years does not depend on supporting voices from within the National Reform Council but on whether he will be able to achieve reconciliation and tackle injustice and disunity problems.
The main aim of the political roadmap is how to ensure a free and fair election and not the high-speed train projects, special economic zones, new floating markets or the myriad of megaprojects launched since his government came to power, said the writer, adding most people want the government to do the things that a normal government would do.
Also, he said it is unclear what is to be reformed and how long it will take for the reforms to be accomplished.
He doubted whether the prime minister would be able to keep the “five rivers” of power in check and asks whether he dares to reshuffle his cabinet, especially the economic team. If he fails to do so, staying on longer will be pointless, said Mud Lek.
Respect, or servitude?
Netizensare lashing out at Western journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall after he posted an image of young schoolgirls prostrating in the classroom with the comment: “Thai education is about producing slaves, not empowering them’’.
His post was picked by the admin of the popular drama-addict.com who said the schoolgirls practice a posture called benchankapradit that is adopted when a person pays respect to a Buddha image or monks as they were in a class on Buddhism. It’s common for Buddhists in any country to pay respect to a Buddha image in this position.
The admin, who calls himself “Ja,” said the reporter must differentiate between showing respect and succumbing to the powers-that-be. Only the latter is enslaving, he said. People of other religions such as Muslims also prostate themselves when they pray to their god, for example. Several netizens agreed with him.
One netizen, Pom Kosaiyakanont, asked if Westerners who kneel before an image of Jesus Christ can be regarded as “slaves.”
However, exiled historian Somsak Jeamteerasakul backed Marshall, saying Thailand has a culture that trains its people to be submissive, and kow-tow to power. He also criticised the drama-addict admin for being too shallow.
Mr Somsak asked if it’s necessary for people to prostate when paying respect to someone or something. “Isn’t this more than just paying respect? Isn’t this an act of debasing oneself?” asked Mr Somsak.
The admin is sticking by his position, though he admitted part of Thai education still accommodates the idea of kow-towing, such as the hazing rituals at university.
Some netizens criticised Marshall for being too judgmental on prostrating, yet they think Thai education needs reform.