Thaksin made populism a sacred policy worshipped by every govt since

Abhisit Vejjajiva must have been demented to nit-pick over Prayut “Santa” Chan-o-cha’s populist policy, saying “the welfare scheme was no different from previous populist policies”!
Apparently, Abhisit was oblivious to his own actions in this area. When in office, he too doled out Bt2,000 cheques to 10 million low-income people, under a programme ridiculously named Cheque Chuay Chart. (The cheques were handled by Bangkok Bank instead of government-owned banks, and I wondered why). As Shakespeare wrote: “The raven chides blackness” (“Troilus and Cressida”). Or as an uncouth man like me would say: “A harlot calls a prostitute a whore.” 
Let’s admit it: populist policy, once castigated by critics of Thaksin, is now being accepted and practised religiously by every government. 
Somsak Pola
Samut Prakan