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Chavalit resurfaces, issues veiled warning to Thaksin

Chavalit resurfaces, issues veiled warning to Thaksin

FORMER PRIME minister and political veteran Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, who once led the Pheu Thai Party, is back in the media limelight. And once again the focus is former PM Thaksin Shinawatra, who recently accused the junta of trying to hang on to power, ye

However, Chavalit was quick to deny that his latest move was politically motivated. 
“I have never relied on anyone or their money. I left Pheu Thai after Thaksin told me in a Skype chat to bring the Shinawatras, the Damapongs and the Wongsawats into the party,” Chavalit said, referring to three families Thaksin is related to by blood or marriage. 
Chavalit, a retired Army general who once led a party called New Aspiration, joined Pheu Thai in 2009 and left two years later. 
Speaking to the media at his home recently, Chavalit said he has no interest in whether Thaksin returns or not. “Conflicts still exist and I have no power to bring him back,” he added. 
Thaksin fled Thailand just before the Supreme Court sentenced him in absentia to two years in jail in 2008 for abuse of power. He also faces other charges for dereliction of duty during his tenure as premier. 
Yet judging from the recent speech he delivered in the United States, Thaksin appears to be convinced that “some power” will help him return as free man in the near future. Chavalit, however, disagrees—and his remarks could imply that Thaksin faces major problems. 
For starters, Pheu Thai will certainly face an uphill task if it continues sticking with its goal to bring the “big boss” back as a free man. The party seems to have forgotten that when the last government it led passed the amnesty law, it prompted public outrage and months of street protests leading to a military coup in May 2014. 
If Pheu Thai wins the next election and opts for the same path to try and help Thaksin, then the nightmare will return and Thaksin—who has been in self-exile overseas—will find himself in an even more difficult position. 
Yet it looks like Thaksin still hasn’t given up his desire to return to power and possibly achieve his ultimate goal of “ “being prime minister for 20 years and becoming a statesman someday”.
In order to realise that goal, Thaksin still has to rely on the Shinawatra, Damapong and Wongsawat clans, though some members – his sister ex-PM Yingluck and brother-in-law ex-PM Somchai Wongsawat – are mired in legal problems. 
Experience has taught Thaksin that he cannot rely on any nominee prime minister who does not come from one of these three clans. For instance, his proxy premier Samak Sundaravej brought him much disappointment. He could have returned home when Samak and the People Power Party ran the government, yet they did little to help him with his legal problems. 
Clearly for Thaksin, blood is thicker than water, and members from any of the three families are certainly more reliable and trustworthy than outsiders.
Many political observers are convinced that Thaksin’s proxy Pheu Thai has a good chance of winning the next election, and the prime ministerial candidate is bound to be someone “closest to the big boss”. 
However, it looks like Chavalit’s recent remark was a veiled warning to Thaksin that it may not be a good idea for him to continue relying on someone from one of the three clans. Now, let’s wait and see if Thaksin heeds what his old ally has to say. 
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