Sondhi: Lots of people hate me...I don't care

Sondhi Limthongkul has given several "exclusive interviews" to newspapers since he took over as leader of the New Politics Party. Being a former journalist himself, there was no way he could avoid some of the tough questions he himself had thrown at others.

At one point during an interview with a Thai Post reporter, Sondhi was asked point-blank:

"Do you realize you have lots of weak points?"

Sondhi, almost without hesitation, responded:

"Yes, a lot...My weak points include being aggressive...I don't give in to others. I say what I think. Mass media people hate my guts.I can't help it. But the day that I die, when they look back, they will regret that Thai society wouldn't have anyone like me anymore..."

Question: People have extreme feelings towards you: They either love you or hate you.

Answer: Lots of people hate me. I don't care. I am not a man in the middle because I make my position clear....

He apparently liked the long and comprehensive interview, which was labelled: "Sondhi's first interview with Thai Post!

Manager Online reprinted the full text today.

Touching base with grass-roots...on a helicopter

This picture was taken by someone seated next to PM Abhisit Vejjajiva -- his PM Office Minister Sathit Wongnongtoei -- on a helicopter ride from one stop in Ubon to Yasothorn on Saturday.

The caption that accompanied this picture, posted by Sathit on his Twitter, says: "PM in a relaxing mood."

But one Twitterer commented: "I think the PM looks tired."

It was like a "war zone" when about 4,000 policemen were mobilized to provide security for the PM who was hopping from one location to another on a helicopter.

His peformance on the ground in the three Northeastern provinces -- as shown on this morning's programme on Channel 11 -- was lively and impressive though. Whether the villagers had been gathered by by local officials and politicians or not, Abhisit managed to look and sound like a guy who had finally touched base with the "grass-roots" people.

Despite the inherent risk of facing "red-shirted protests" in the Northeast rural areas, the PM will have to prove that he can go anywhere he wants to communicate directly with the villagers who have grown disillusioned with the "Bangkok Establishment" obsessed with infighting only for their own benefits.

For Sondhi, where is the line drawn among PAD, NPP and ASTV?

If you ask him, Sondhi Limthongkul, the leader of the newly-formed New Politics Party (NPP), there is no conflict between his role as a political party leader, icon of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and operator of ASTV.

He went on ASTV just now to make his stand clear: The party is a part of PAD which has many other tools.

Asked whether as party leader closely associated with the ownership of a television channel, there wouldn't be questions of conflic of interests, Sondhi said: "No. When Thaksin (Shinawatra) was prime minister, he also owned ITV. One of his ministers, Pracha Malinond, owns Channel 3. Channel 9 was also under his control...so, as long as ASTV and NPP continue to play their professional roles, I see no conflict."

His critics, though, would find that kind of arguments rather feeble. "I know that once I am in politics, I will come under scrutiny. I am ready for that."

Ready or not, the scrutiny will begin in earnest soon enough.

Abhisit, Nibhon: Today's the day!

It would really take a miracle for Nibhon Promphand to change his mind about quitting...and PM Abhisit Vejjajiva seems resigned to the fact that he will have to effect a mini-Cabinet shake-up to shake off the political fall-off from this rather bizarre episode.

What's the big fuss about a PM's secretary (even if "general" is attached to the title) quitting? Under normal circumstances, it might have made news for a day or two and a new secretary would be named in his place.

What's the big fuss about a replacement for the national police chief? It might have made headlines for a few days but after the PM decides who the new guy should be, things would be back to normal.

But in this case, one small thing led to another small thing and a big bang materialized.

Those who claim to know the "inside story" say Nibhon is no ordinary PM's secretary. He is supposed to have special connections that the PM can't afford to ignore. And when he joined up with Deputy PM Suthep Thuagsuban (who happens to be his brother-in-law)to support Police Gen Jumpon Manmai instead of going along with the PM to name Police Gen Pateep Tanprasert, it was obviously not an ordinary case of "I-beg-to- differ, sir" sort of argument.

It has also been pointed out to me that the PM did raise some eyebrows when he went to Nibhon's house instead of the other way round one day last week to try to thrash things out.

"Things will be cleared up on Monday (today)," Abhisit repeatedly told reporters.

Last night, speculation began to fly to the effect that Nibhon wouldn't change his mind and Abhisit was pondering a mini-Cabinet reshuffle -- naming Deputy PM Korbsak Sabhavasu to replace Nibhon and putting senior Democrat Trairong Suwannakhiri to replace Korbsak.

Morals of this story: Never put two small things together. They could explode into a big big bang.

Bt300m state sponsorship? Sarocha hits back at Jatuporn

Sarocha Pornudomsak has issued a strongly-worded denial of red-shirted leader Jatuporn Phrompan's allegation that TAN Network had received some Bt300 million from the Abhisit government.

Here is her statement of disappointment over Jatuporn in particular and the press in general:

On September 28, 2009, the Matichon Online agency printed a comment made by a prominent leader of the Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship, Jatuporn Phrompan, which cited false information about how the Office of the Prime Minister had allocated funds of around 300 million baht (Three hundred million baht) to the TAN Network.

After being informed of the report, Sarosha Pornudomsak, TAN’s Network Director immediately came out to deny the allegations, both on-air on TAN Network and on ASTV. However, Jatuporn chose to ignore those rebuttals and continued to defame the network further the next day with continued media reports suggesting that the government had given the TAN Network sponsorship of 300 million baht.

Jatuporn also attempted to link the TAN Network with the Democrat Party by citing the appearance of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and other members of his Cabinet at the official launch of the Thai-ASEAN News Network on August 26, 2009. On this issue, we would like to say that the Prime Minister indeed appeared as our guest of honor for the event. Many ministers from his administration did attend the event as well. However, this does not in any way suggest “irregular relations” between the network and the government. All our guests attended for one reason, and one reason only, and that is that they all had a mutual belief that Thailand, as an emerging market in the global economy, must have a viable alternative for the foreign community when it comes to English broadcast news. It did not, under any circumstance, imply that the government was ready to “sponsor” the network in financial terms.

What Jatuporn has suggested is completely inaccurate and is malicious in its intention to discredit this government and the TAN Network.

This press release is to, once again reiterate, that the Thai-ASEAN News (TAN) Network has never received any amount of sponsorship from this government or any other government in the past. We are a privately owned, independent news station that offers accurate and unbiased news to our viewers, both foreign and Thai. Our news reports are factual and are presented in a straightforward manner. Our commentaries are clearly distinguished apart from our news segments and reflect the views and opinions of guest speakers and senior journalists who appear on our shows.

We are disappointed that Jatuporn, as a Member of Parliament under the Phue Thai banner, chose to target our news organization to further his political gains. Surprisingly, under the current political climate, news agencies throughout Thailand chose to run the story without having even checked with the TAN Network as to whether the allegations had any truth. This is yet another disappointing factor.

The Thai-ASEAN News Network, once again, insists that it has never received any sponsorship, financial or otherwise, from the Thai government. We continue to report the news with integrity and accountability and because of that, our legal teams are preparing to press charges of defamation against Jatuporn Phrompan and all media organizations which chose to report the story without any attempts to ask involved parties.


The Thai-ASEAN News (TAN) Network
Bangkok, Thailand
October 1, 2009

If Abhisit had his way...the next election should be held ....

If you put two and two together, the logical conclusion is that PM Abhisit Vejjajiva's grand plan is for a House dissolution to call a new election around the middle of next year.

How do I know? I don't think anyone knows, not even the PM himself, because there are so many variables to be taken into consideration, not the least being his own Democrat Party's relations with the largest coalition partner, Bhumjaithai Party.

And I am not sure that Abhisit's personal ties with his right-hand man, Deputy PM Suthep Thuaksuban, will ever be the same again.

Suthep admitted for the first time publicly this morning: "The Democrat Party is not ready for an election now. We still have many problems to resolve."

As if on cue, PM Abhisit told reporters at a different function at about the same time that he thought if all parties concerned were to work together, the constitutional amendments could be completed in six months -- or nine months at the latest.

At the risk of miscalculating an Abhisit-Suthep close coordination on this issue, I think we can presume that the PM believes he can survive the next six months after which an election would be inevitable, whether his party is ready or not.

And if he had his way, a referendum will be held on the proposed charter changes before the House is dissolved (the PM is the only person empowered to do that) and a new election called.

All this is based on the presumption, of course, that Abhisit is in a position to call most of the political shots from now until early next year.

And nobody can guarantee that either.

Who's behind this 'little red book?'

Nobody is quite sure who produced this booklet, entitled: "Bankrupt All Over" as a sort of parody of the red shirts' slogan: "Red All Over."

What is clear is that the author tries very hard to link the red shirts to the "left" movement and you can see the red star all over the hats being worn on the prominent figures on the frontline.

Thaksin Shinawatr has been equally vehement that he is no communist. But he has made no public attempt to rein in Jakrapob Penkhair in his apparently left-leaning pronouncements. Neither has he made any official comment on the obvious split between Jakrapob and the "Red Trio" -- Jatuporn, Veera and Natthawut.

You can say Thaksin, having burned all his bridges with the government, wouldn't want to break any plank crossing the raging river on this side of the divide.