Samak poises to be 25th PM of Thailand
Updated: 2008-01-21 21:15
The honeymoon period, if there is to be one, will be brief given that the Thai economy, as well as consumers and businesses, have all been suffering from the political divide over the past two-to-three years, local analysts said.
Besides economic issues, Samak's political shrewdness will also be put to the test when he has to deal with a number of political time-bombs awaiting the new government, especially the PPP plan to seek amnesty for the 111 former executive members of the dissolved Thai Rak Thai Party, including Thaksin, who were barred from politics for a period of five years by a court ruling last May.
Samak will also have to manage the comeback of Thaksin from his exile in London in a fashion that will help heal the wounds caused by the political divide while keeping his hands off alleged corruption and abuse of power cases against the ex-premier and his family.
A lawsuit is now pending in court alleging that the ex-premier abused his power by endorsing his wife's purchase of a multibillion-baht plot of prime real estate from the state while he was in office in the early 2000s. In addition, the Department of Special Investigation has accused the ex-premier and his wife of hiding assets in a family-controlled company. All of these cases and related legal issues are best left to the judicial system. However, Samak will be on a tightrope when he faces pressure from within his own party to seek amnesty for fellow executives of the disbanded Thai Rak Thai Party.
And also, the Constitution installed by the military after the September 19, 2006 coup is reportedly to be amended as the first task of the new government. But, that may stir more complaints of those who benefits from the military-edition Constitution.
Anyway, Samak is much close to the post of premier. Local English newspaper Bangkok Post's Deputy Editor-in-Chief Veera Prateepchaikul said in his Monday's editorial that "unless there is a miracle, which is unlikely, Samak Sundaravej will definitely be named Thailand's 25th prime minister on Friday when the House is due to nominate a candidate or candidates for the premier's post."
But maybe, the next problem following is how long can Samak hold the post.
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