Nobody is perfect,govt spokesman says
Government spokesman Surapong Suebwonglee yesterday defended the prime minister against an attack by social critic Prawase Wasi by saying it was extremely difficult to find the perfect person.
He also criticised Democrat senior adviser Chuan Leekpai for laying the problems of the South on caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, saying there were too many other factors involved. On Sunday at Thammasat University, Prawase outlined a 10-point guide for future prime ministers at a symposium on political reform. He accused Thaksin, who several years ago pledged to adopt all of his recommendations, of failing to keep his promise. Surapong retorted that while the 10 points were important for any prospective prime minister, it was a lot to ask of anyone. "We have to accept that it is hard to find such a man," he said. He said Prawase had talked about this issue in 2001 and had accused Thaksin of not living up to his promises. But the prime minister had attempted to resolve many of the country's problems, inclu-ding trying to put a stop to corruption. Surapong rejected the claim by Chuan, also speaking at Thammasat University, that Thaksin was personally responsible for failing to solve the problems in the South. He said Chuan was holding Thaksin personally responsible for the crisis and had said the country faced an unprecedented political divide and a dramatic surge in violence as a result of Thaksin's mismanagement. But the violence was not only a result of the region's history. There were also pro-blems with trying to eradicate "influential persons" and drugs traders. "Some groups who have lost their vested interests want to remove Thaksin from politics because the premier has been trying hard to wipe out drugs, mafia gangs and bureaucratic scandals," Surapong said. "The premier might be not the perfect man. He has weak points which need to be improved. But in the last five years the premier has proved that he can solve conflicts in the country," Surapong said. He also rejected Chuan's assertion of a conflict between the prime minister and the Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda. "Chuan has assumed that it is a conflict. In fact the Privy Council is not involved with politics, it acts only as the King's advisor," Surapong said. He said it was not appropriate to bring the Privy Council into politics.
Piyanart Srivalo The Nation
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