It’s easy to judge the one-year-old Yingluck government in Thailand. All
you need is to understand news spin and American football's fast-moving
defensive-offensive tactics.
First of all, the Thais
wholeheartedly would agree without any hesitation that it is nice to look at
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra due to her photogenic face, which is closely
linked to her above average approval rating.
Indeed, she has made very good
use of her appearance. Never mind that she does not have anything to say; and
more precisely that she has quite a unique style of leadership – no leadership
whatsoever.
With her charm, the media, both
electronic and print, have been gullible in championing her visuals and body
language as effective ways to communicate what's left unsaid.
"Photos speak louder than
words" is an apt description, especially in her case.
For the past year, more than any
previous Thai prime minister, she had the best visual coverage in all forms of
media. She had more photos published of herself engaging with villagers and the
suffering public during the floods last year with her index finger pointing at
troubled people and areas – as if her hand was a magic wand, a panacea.
Recently, she was praised as a
role model for mothers and Thai women, as her love of her son was exemplary and
for her life's devotion for the good of nation – not to mention as the
country's first female prime minister. That much is clear.
To top it all, during the past
year not a day went by without a full-page ad in the mainstream media on how
great the government was because of its populist policies.
Media relations firms and ad
agencies love the government as billions of baht have been allocated for
long-term media campaigns to make the people feel in sync with the style of
government under Yingluck, and to make sure she is well-connected to Thais on
the street.
The previous government was made
to look detached and stingy. Foreign TV channels proposed numerous plans to do
publicity for Thailand. The answer was often in the negative. But this
government welcomed publicity at any price.
Of late, attempts have been made
to create an illusion that the current leader has a mind of her own and is
quite independent, especially from her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra.
This impression has been given
priority after the media-spin master Suranant Vejjajiva served as her personal
secretary. He has become her most trusted aide in managing what the prime
minister will say and do during the day, and at the end of the day, what will
be the media impact. He has done a superb job in elevating her profile.
But one thing has not changed:
whenever she faces challenges and unrehearsed situations, she remains passive.
At the regular Cabinet meeting, she continues to be a convener, not a leader.
To understand the rest of the
Yingluck government, one needs to understand American football's playing
tactics – defensive and offensive – that are used to gain yardage and score
touchdowns. The government has been able to combine all these tactics with its
key players: the red-shirt members, academia, businessmen, bureaucrats, police
and soldiers as part of the dream team akin to American football players
setting traps on sidelines or in end zones. Once the opponents get stuck on one
of the formations, the team scores and moves on – shifting and changing
whenever possible.
The never-ending formations of
defensive-offensive tactics have kept critics and pundits at bay. Worse, the
Thai media have lost their way in the labyrinth of deceptive schemes, whether
it is the much-vaulted reconciliation bill, the pledging of the rice price or
the women's development fund. The latest plan is the new operations centre in
Bangkok to manage the southern provinces to give another illusion that
something is being done to quell the crisis.
Lastly, there have reportedly
been negotiations with the separatists. Normally, the state players would enter
into such a game when they have the upper hand against the non-state actor. It
does not make sense.
Well, whether the Thais deserve a
leader such as this is out of the question for now. Recent polls, both
professional and non-professionally, have yielded one common result: she is not
such a bad leader and she should stay on.
Any criticism against her now
would be unfair and considered an insidious conspiracy: after all, she has
always said nice things without rubbing anyone the wrong way. That alone was
her prime virtue during the past one year because the Thais have too many
problems trying to stay above the high cost of living, let alone trying to
decipher what the prime minister says.
In fact, her lack of views has
been a blessing in disguise: her predecessor suffered tremendously from making
insightful and intelligent comments. While his views were coherent and
realistic, unfortunately they were not what the public wanted to hear. The
Thais want to feel good with some money to spend in hand.
In the rural areas, Bt10 or Bt20
can make quite a difference. Yingluck and her Pheu Thai Party have made sure
that funds must be dispersed quickly to them, even with a lot of pilfering
along the way. Corruption is endemic in this government, but the Thais in
general do not care as long as they have something in their hands, however
briefly.
Short of that, anything is not
good. In the previous government, the disposal of public funds was slow due to
stringent rules, which caused public resentment. The opposite is now true, this
government spends a great deal, and shows an ability to hide spending in
various accounts – like crooked corporate auditors.
So the government successfully
fulfilled some of the 16 policy pledges announced the same week last year. Some
of it is sloppy work – everything is a work in progress.
Again, the Thais do not mind as
long as they are implemented. Long-term negative consequences are not in their
heads. Live and let live another day. Therefore, the government spins
day-to-day policies and convinces the public that they have a good life. The
future has yet to come. There is no payback time with the current government –
only a way forward – because the Pheu Thai Party will always win the next
election at any given time.
Even in foreign policy, the
government is changing all the rules. Yingluck is very proud that she has
transformed all the Thai ambassadors, who normally represent the Royal Court,
into salespersons for the OTOP products overseas.
No wonder we are represented in
some important countries now by diplomats-cum-supporters of her brother. In
fact, some ambassadors are quite happy with this new task. Well, it is less
stressful than trying to articulate the Thai political shenanigans and explain
it plain English. Also, a lot more is happening around Thailand – in Myanmar,
Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos these days.
In the 65 years since the end of
WWII, Thailand was considered the region's prima donna that nobody could match,
being the only independent country without colonization and its baggage.
Unfortunately, the Thais have taken things for granted. Now the good days are
over, all countries around Thailand have access to the same human resources and
capital.
They have made quick jump-starts
with clear directions. Furthermore, they have better stories to tell and their
people are more eager and full of energy.
The Yingluck government wants the
country to reach out to the world while she remains passive in communicating
with the global community. Her coming speech at the United Nations at end of
next month will be interesting to watch. She will attempt to describe how
Thailand intends to be a facilitator between the rich and poor countries, the
North and South, as well as the big powers and small powers, etc.
Thailand is traditionally very
adroit in swinging from one side to the other liked a willow bending in the
wind. Under her helm, Thailand no longer aspires to lead, it just wants to plug
in with the rest of the world – that, it is believed, is good enough.
Kavi Chongkittavorn
Kavi Chongkittavorn is a widely followed commentator on Thailand and
Southeast Asian affairs.
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