I advise my sister; PM Yingluck, because she's new : Thaksin tells Forbes
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Deposed Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is in frequent touch with his sister, the current PM Yingluck, to advise about official matters as well as family business, he told Forbes magazine in an article published on October 29.
He travels freely outside his homeland and is investing “not very much” in African mining projects to stay occupied while exiled in Dubai, he said. Thaksin said he spoke a few times a week, or more, to Yingluck – often on family affairs but also to advise on official matters.
“Sometimes when there’s a hot issue, we talk more. Because I know the people, I know the law, I know international protocols. She is new. She doesn’t need to call me, but when she does, I can give her the answers immediately. Because I am sitting here doing nothing.”
Thaksin is not shy talking about his behind-the-scenes role both in the party and in policy making, saying, “I am the one who thinks. Like our slogan during the campaign, Thaksin thinks, Pheu Thai acts.”
Thaksin met, alone, with Forbes Asia contributing editor Lan Anh Nguyen for nearly an hour at a Dubai hotel he evidently uses for business appointments while residing in a nearby luxury development. Two nights earlier, he had mixed with Thai tycoons and others at an evening event at the Forbes Global CEO Conference in Dubai.
Thaksin also said that since soon after Yingluck took power in 2011, his Thai passport was restored and he has been able to travel widely on it. He continues to have backup passports issued by supportive governments such as Montenegro where he has property. He said he recently visited the US and was received by Henry Kissinger for a chat.
Thaksin confirmed previous reports that, through his Global PS business, he has invested “so far…about US$30 million” in African mining concessions.
These projects have arisen at the invitation of friendly leaders of the respective governments, Thaksin said his firm was not sharing investment stakes at this point. “In doing mining if you brought a strategic partner in the beginning you have no value… Because they are big and you are small. I am like a start up again. Starting up at 60 is not fun. But anyway this is not serious for me. It’s a type of venture.”
Thaksin admitted that he knew nothing of mining going in, but said he has spurned other international opportunities in telecom, the major source of his original fortune. Returns in that sector no longer justify getting back into it, he said.
