• 
• 

Published on September 30, 2007

Whether his hard stance was due to pressing circumstances or his conscience is anybody's guess.

Let's hope that Surayud did mean what he said at the UN and that he intends to take harsh measures against the cut-throats now exercising repressive measures and murdering their fellow countrymen, including monks.

Back at home, Surayud will have to put his leadership on the line for another tough test after almost a year of a sloppy performance that has deeply disappointed those who had expected him to achieve some degree of national restoration.

This time round the people will judge him by the way he selects a few good and competent people to fill the vacant seats left by scandal-tainted Cabinet members. It will be a test of his character and his will to make amends for past failures.

There is not much reason for the people to hope that he really intends to overcome his government's shortcomings, judging from an earlier statement in which he said he would make just a few changes, while a sweeping reshuffle would have been a better choice.

There are less than four months left before a new government takes over following a general election. Until then Surayud can still try his best (because his previous best was not good enough) to go down in history as an able national leader, not just a chair-warmer like his fellow Cabinet members.

He should have taken the opportunity to get rid of the deadwood in the Cabinet and replace them with people with fire in their bellies. Again, self-respecting people will be extremely reluctant to work under Surayud for fear that the leader will continue his lame-duck performance.

More dreadful is that Surayud might take the Interior Ministry portfolio himself, either because he doesn't trust others or he believes that he still has some stamina to spare and is competent enough to oversee the general elections and maintain law and order amidst rising crime and low security for the common people.

Being prime minister is already hard work, and he has also admitted his own failure in selecting low-calibre figures to take Cabinet seats during unsettling times, which require people with real competence and dedication, not ones with self-serving aspirations.

If Surayud indeed decides to take the Interior Ministry portfolio, he should come up with a really good reason to convince the people that he is not biting off more than he can chew. Warming one big chair is unacceptable to begin with: he should know his own limitations, not seek another important seat and allow somebody else to do the job. But if it really comes to that, it may mean that nobody else who is up to it trusts him enough to serve under him.

What's more, the remaining months for Surayud will be a tormenting test of his tolerance as criticism gets louder over his questionable landholdings on a hilltop in Nakhon Ratchasima province. This has become an awkward issue, one he does not want to discuss. Like it or not, he will no longer be spared by former friends, let alone long-standing critics.

This is a key factor that may force him out of the premiership before his term expires if his conscience becomes troubled enough. Then again, it will also test his character and integrity as the top holder of public office.

His chances of surviving continuing criticism on this point are not really high. The three Cabinet members might wonder aloud: "Why just us, when the prime minister's case is even more blatant and damaging?"

Surayud's managerial style so far has been focused on self-preservation so that he can retire in peace without some people, especially Thaksin's cronies, seeking vengeance. If the questionable landholdings are not troubling enough, his critics may point out his wealth and high living on an estate inside a golf course.

Surayud must prepare a convincing response to these issues in addition to questions over his selection of new members of his Cabinet and how much he intends to shape up to try to fulfil the Sisyphean task of the government.

The next few weeks will be crucial for Surayud to survive on a political tightrope. There should be no hint of using the Burma crisis to deflect public attention from the pressing problems at home.

By the way, since the government is not good at basic public relations, this will make it even more difficult to restore faith and confidence among the people; the private sector has long been resigned to the fact that they must rely on self-help to survive the current economic plight.

The loud cheers of his first days in office have fallen away; the criticism is deafening. Surayud's tolerance so far of his low ratings offers quite an astonishing lesson in fending off adversity with the key weapon of indifference.

Sopon Onkgara