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Published on January 25, 2008

 But the mood has been subdued.

Yongyuth Tiyapairat has been considered the "golden boy" of the refrigerator industry ever since he led a team of police investigators to ambush a house in Ayutthaya, where people were believed to be involved in the drug trade. At the time he was serving as secretary for prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The police opened fire on the house. The owner of the house, a 67-year-old lady, had to duck for cover. Luckily she escaped the hail of bullets unharmed. But there were several dozen bullet holes in her refrigerator, which saved her life.

That famous incident has come to be known as "Operation Refrigerator". Later it was found that the target was wrong. The lady has recently emerged to congratulate Yongyuth on his appointment as House Speaker. But she said he would still have to see her in court. Yuth the Refrigerator will never disappear from her nightmare. So, his legend lives on.

The Election Commission has also been casting a serious eye at Yongyuth, a party-list MP from Chiang Rai. Some of its members have been going after him over allegations of election fraud. He has been let off the hook temporarily, pending a full investigation. The EC could shoot him down any time. Will this paper tiger have the guts to do so?

On Tuesday, Yongyuth strode into Parliament with pride. As a key member of the People Power Party and one of Thaksin's closest aides, he had been nominated as House Speaker. He is one of the youngest people to take on this prestigious position in the long history of Thai democracy. The PPP-led coalition is backed by 315 MPs. All of them were supposed to vote for Yongyuth's nomination. The Democrat Party nominated Banyat Bantadtan as its contender, knowing full well Banyat would never make it, with only 166 MPs sitting on the other side of the House.

At the end of the count, three votes from the coalition wing went to Banyat. Another six extra votes went to Khunying Kalaya Sophonpanich, the nominee for deputy House Speaker. The PPP was fuming. "Hey, can we play politics with etiquette?" one of its members cried out.

Some coalition partners obviously do not want the PPP to have a free ride. The signal is that, "Anything can happen if you don't treat us good enough; or we can pull the carpet from under your feet at any time".

Who are the black sheep then? Some tried to point the finger at Banharn Silapa-archa, leader of the Chat Thai Party, who could only have played this high-class trick. But Banharn said: "Who can know the culprits in a blind vote?"

On Wednesday, Yongyuth and a dozen MPs dressed in white uniforms, ready to swear an oath of office in front of a portrait of His Majesty the King. He was waiting for the royal signature to his appointment as House Speaker before he could go into the swearing-in ceremony.

The royal endorsement did not come. They all had to go home.

Yesterday morning at 9am, Yongyuth and his supporters dressed up again for the swearing-in ceremony at Parliament. Again, there was no sign that a letter of royal endorsement had arrived.

Yongyuth had to wait all day before the letter of royal endorsement finally arrived in the evening. Another hurdle was overcome. Only after his swearing-in ceremony could he formally open Parliament for the first session, where the MPs would pick the new prime minister.

Samak Sundaravej, PPP leader, was supposed to be nominated and voted in as PM today. But this will have to be delayed until Monday, when Parliament convenes. Samak, too, has been under the same unlucky stars as Yongyuth. He has accused "dirty hands" of blocking his way to power. He has had to fight for the top job. Banharn is waiting in the wings.

Unlike Yongyuth, Samak has called on all kinds of supernatural power to boost his luck. He earlier distributed Buddha amulets to his supporters in order to scare off his political enemies. The Phra Phairee Pinat Buddha amulets have been created to destroy his foes. He also sought a blessing from Luang Phor Khun of Wat Pa Ban Rai in Nakhon Ratchasima. On Wednesday he held a religious ceremony designed to bolster his fortune as he prepares to take on the premiership.

As you can see, both Yuth the Refrigerator and Samak the nominee prime minister have not enjoyed a smooth ride in their rise to power. There have been "dirty votes" and "dirty hands" standing in their way.

Given these rocky starts, the refrigerator industry will not rush to congratulate Yongyuth. Samak might also need to call on further supernatural power to prop up his fortune, although the premiership is now within arm's reach.

Thanong Khanthong

The Nation