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Published on August 27, 2007

Some politicians are affluent people in the provinces with connections to get votes by whatever means. Thai political parties operate like privately owned clubs the public knows nothing about. Some have hidden agendas known only to some executives.

In developed democracies, political parties are open organisations, operated with high degree of transparency - the British Labour Party's annual conference recently was telecast live around the world by the BBC. In these countries, political parties do not belong to any group of people. We always see new faces offering new choices and new ideas. But in Thailand, we have seen the same small group of people for decades, without new ideas but with changing personal agendas. It's no wonder that a survey reported by The Nation on January 30 this year found that Thais trust political parties the least.

For democracy to work, we first need to make political parties democratic. We should make political parties open organisations with transparent operations. The general public should apply for membership of political parties and the parties should have no right to deny applicants membership. Some of these members will bring expertise in many fields valuable for making policy. And the party operations will become professional with relevant functions to support decision-making. This will make people with valuable expertise and experience come forward to serve our country. To prove their love for democracy, politicians should welcome outsiders in any profession to join their parties and give them equal opportunity. Out of 60 million Thais, many will surely have skills in public administration.

As in developed countries, political parties should be open to all.

Prichar

Bangkok

Horror scenario if Samak's party wins

 Re: "Samak vows to avenge Thaksin", News, August 25.

It took me until the middle paragraphs of the story on the inside page to realise what this headline really meant: conflict, revenge and a "declaration of war" ahead.

I suppose it was to be expected that the Council for National Security would go down in the annals of Thai history as the greatest waste of space ever.

In the worst-case scenario that Samak Sundaravej's People Power Party gains 50 per cent of parliamentary seats, the spirit of reconciliation will be trampled upon, vengeful retribution perpetrated, nationalist and isolationist policies re-enacted, the perversely crushing provisions of the Foreign Business Act sanctioned, inward investment spurned, all legal charges against former premier Thaksin Shinawatra and Samak revoked, Thaksin's assets thawed, the Assets Examination Committee disbanded, the new Constitution revised and press freedom viciously atrophied.

It is a genuinely sad day for Thailand. I cannot possibly imagine what could provoke Thai people enough to choose the emasculating chaos their votes will cause should this come to pass. And I wonder how much Thaksin put on the table for Samak to carry out his pursuit of destruction by proxy?

James Groveway

Bangkok

With Christmas so near, can we drink before poll?

 I think everybody is pleased that the election date is being set and, hopefully, there will be smooth transition to a new, democratically elected government. However, as a tourism professional, I am alarmed at the proposed date of December 23. This is effectively the beginning of the Christmas rush. The cause for concern is the law regarding the sale of alcohol on election day and the preceding night. I suspect that many European tourists will be genuinely put off by this.

So if December 23 is to be the election day, may I ask the government to at least remove the alcohol ban that would normally apply.

Sam Worthington

Bangkok

Something fishy behind all the ruckus at TOT

 Re: "Union demands sacking of Saprang, entire board", News, August 24.

There is no smoke without fire, but the smoke that billowed from TOT Plc over the past week or so was thicker than usual. It signified trouble, indeed. The Information and Communications Technology Minister Sitthichai Pookaiya-udom reportedly said that TOT was "cursed". Even he, for now, has no answer to the problem at hand. One of our most profitable state enterprises has seen its revenue decline to about half of what it was at the same period the year before.

Bickering is everywhere - between the board of directors and the president, between the president and his vice-presidents, and now between the board and the workers' union, who demanded the ousting of the board chairman and its members, as well as the president. Board chairman General Saprang Kalayanamitr appears to be at the centre of this smear campaign, whether he knows it or not. He declared that only the prime minister or the chairman of the Council for National Security could dismiss him, and if neither them thought he should quit, he couldn't care less.

But General Saprang should care. Not because he is the leading candidate for the position of Army commander-in-chief, but because TOT has been the mother of at least three concessionaires, as far as I know, that have been making more profit than TOT itself. Since the so-called "privatisation" that reduced TOT to a position somewhat less than that a state enterprise, the assaults have been relentless. TOT lost in the arbitration on an access charge dispute that awarded True Corporation a hefty compensation of more than Bt9 billion. It cannot afford to lose any more in an appeal which not only will cost some Bt17 billion, but also will result in similar claims by other "joint-venture partners" such as AIS, DTAC and TT&T against both TOT and CAT. Any final, positive decision on the True case would open a floodgate that would indeed sink TOT and CAT for good.

I am not an avid follower of telecommunications affairs, but most observers would agree that all state telecommunications enterprises were considerably weakened by the Thaksin government's policies. The introduction of an excise tax, for example, greatly reduced the revenue received from the concessions of both the TOT and the CAT. Luckily, Sitthichai revoked this excise tax, but whether or not it will save the viability of these state telecom enterprises remains to be seen.

Removing the TOT board of directors and president for the sake of expediency will not solve anything. After all, the board's term will end with the advent of the new administration some time in January 2008, and that of the president on December 20 this year, when he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 60. So why the rush, because three or four months from now everything will be back in order? Is it because somebody would like to see the decision of the arbitration committee that awarded Bt9 billion to True Corporation implemented before an appeal has the chance to win the day?

That, I think, is for your newspaper to find out for faithful readers and common folk like me who know absolutely nothing about telecommunications.

Prachyadavi Tavedikul

Bangkok

Authorities ignoring problem with taxis

 Re: "Airport taxis just want to take you for a ride", Letters, August 26.

This is a problem that is allowed to continue by regulators who clearly do not care about the dishonest treatment that travellers to Thailand receive with regard to taxis.

This problem exists all over Thailand. It seems the people who control the airport taxis are not the official regulators but a rogue element that has the industry under its control. The issue is raised repeatedly but is never given any attention.

For an even worse experience, try Phuket Airport!

Stuart

Cullen Bay, Australia