Fly on The Corporate Wall

The man who has advised people via his lectures, books, columns, radio and TV doesn’t feel much different though. "I talked to my wife and said we’re billionaires now, but we don’t feel like it – it’s just a figure. We’ve never actually touched the money."

The billionaire couple still eats at roadside shops. "We still use old Japanese cars for almost eight years. My wife still teaches piano at students’ homes." The only big spending he plans is building a modest house on 20 square wah, "but we will use good construction material so it may cost millions". Nives foresees Bt10 billion on his investment books "if I live to 80".

What ‘counts’

Cherman "Ploy" Boonyasak has learned not to mess with the Revenue Department. The actress had a week-long dispute with an event organiser on the social media that has been amplified in newspaper headlines. The misunderstanding turned into a case of possible tax embezzlement after Ploy "Instagrammed" that the organiser had deducted tax from her paycheque. He countered that she’d used another person’s ID to register her income to avoid tax. She countered by posting a photo of her with socialite Sanchai Engtrakul, son of former Revenue Department director-general Somnuek, complete with the caption, "Don’t mess with us."

A lot of criticism on the social media prompted Ploy to remove the photo, but the press asked current Revenue Department chief Start Rangkasiri. He said if the allegation is proved true, Ploy could be prosecuted. So she called an urgent press conference and blamed her office’s accounting unit and now her tax records are under her name.

Ploy apologised for using harsh words, saying she wanted to protect her manager. This is a relief to all her fellow stars because if the controversy goes on it could open a can of worms.