Spot the difference

I agree with Somsak Pola there is no comparison between Thaksin Shinawatra and the runaway monk. The monk is accused and Thaksin is a convicted criminal who betrayed the trust of the country and broke his bond to flee abroad.

Mr Pola is very selective with his “facts” on Thaksin. He gets his first button right: Thaksin was elected to office and endorsed by royal command to run the country. Second button: he rewarded that trust by self-enrichment in office by means of the satellite share scam and other schemes. Third button: he called a snap election, which he tried to win by fraudulent means and failed to do so. Fourth button: he betrayed the trust of the country by deserting it when he was “acting” prime minister long before the coup. Fifth button: he was rightly convicted in the land sale case. Sixth button: he broke his bond after he was trusted to go to the Beijing Olympics. 

Last button: like the monk, he turned out to be well funded abroad. He is dictating government policy from overseas, resulting in the current crises. 

Richard Bowler

Bangkok