So, will he sell the club?

Thaksin tipped to sell Man C - Bangkok Post

Thaksin vows to stay at Man City - AFP

Man City denies Thaksin's sale claims - BBC Sport

Thaksin "not selling Man City" -  Soccernet

Thaksin going nowhere - Teamtalk.com

It's rather clearer now that some meetings have taken place between Thaksin and prospective "business partners". Nobody denied this, but news reports quoted club insiders as saying the meetings were grossly misinterpreted and that Thaksin was "dismayed" by earlier speculation that he was planning to sell the club outright.

The speculation had been intensified mainly by two factors - the diminished chances of Thaksin retrieving his frozen assets and the growing possibility of him getting convicted of corruption. The latter scenario would make England's Football Association force him to sell the club.

The failure to get his frozen money back has restrained Manchester City's transfer activities this summer. This could be the main reason why Thaksin had to hold talks with potential business partners.

Rumours have leaked out of the club that wage bills are becoming more of a headache. In addition, many of the deals done last season now require further payments to be made.

Thaksin's current financial status, however, is seen as sufficient to see the club through for at least another season and the situation will be even better if Mancester City's Uefa Cup campaign continues into the tournament's final stages.

To cap it all, Thaksin won't sell off the club in the near future. Unless, of course, he is forced to do so if convicted of corruption here.

What is the rubber saplings scandal?

The sapling distribution scheme was initiated in 2004 by the then deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives minister Newin Chidchob, purportedly to increase income for farmers in the North and Northeast. A company was contracted to produce 90 million saplings over three years, but irregularities came to light when farmers complained about the poor quality of the saplings, a large number of which were reportedly dead on delivery.

The Bt1.4 billion project was also marred by the long delay in the delivery of the saplings or failure to deliver them at all.

Newin and Somkid Jatusripitak will join 42 others as defendants in this case under the Supreme Court's political crimes section.

Tulsat@hotmail.com