Will Prawit really end Thailand’s decades-long political divide?

Prawit, deputy prime minister of the caretaker Cabinet and leader of Palang Pracharat Party (PPRP), aired these views in a series of articles posted on his Facebook page.

He began posting these articles soon after announcing himself as the PPRP prime minister candidate. This was after his once-beloved protégé General Prayut Chan-o-cha jumped over to join the United Thai Nation Party.

In his articles, Prawit pointed out that the elite, or powerful people in several professions, do not trust politicians, and it is this distrust that has led to coups. Yet, he said, the conservative side always loses subsequent elections to the very politicians they do not trust, thus creating a loop of political conflicts.

In his last article, Prawit proposed the setting up of a panel with representatives from all sides to find solutions to end Thailand’s ongoing political divide once and for all.

He made the same proposal on January 17, when his party announced its tentative candidates.

“I’m ready to establish ties with all sides to lead the country beyond past conflicts, create unity and provide all sides an opportunity to find solutions together,” he said.

Losing popularity stakes

However, as a PM candidate, Prawit is not doing too well in popularity ratings. In fact, he has never made it to the top three favourites in any opinion polls so far.

Most observers believe Prawit lacks the charisma required of a prime minister. Besides, he is not known for his oratory skills. Prawit himself has admitted this shortcoming, which is why he turned down the media’s invitation to join public debates.

Yet, despite his lack of charisma, Prawit is a politician to be reckoned with, because he still commands respect and has strong ties in the Army faction called Burapha Phayuk or the Eastern Tigers.

The Eastern Tigers comprises generals who rose in the ranks in the Second Infantry Division, the Queen’s Guards.

The other powerful faction in the Royal Thai Army is Wong Thewan or the Clan of Angels, comprising generals who rose in the line of command in the First Army Division, the King’s Guards.

Before Prawit, all Army commanders-in-chief came from the Wong Thewan faction. However, in 2004, during the tenure of then-PM Thaksin Shinawatra, Prawit was the first Eastern Tiger to become the Army chief.

Prawit had earned a name for being good at manoeuvring and dealing with politics inside the Army. After completing his term as Army chief, he then helped his first protégé, General Anupong “Pok” Paochinda, succeed him.

While still wielding influence in the Eastern Tigers, Prawit then managed to get Prayut to take the helm of the Army in 2010.

Prawit is often referred to as the big brother of the Eastern Tigers, and Prayut and Anupong his “beloved brothers”. The trio were later referred to as the “3Ps” after the first initial of Prawit and Prayut’s name and Anupong’s nickname.

Master manipulator

It is believed that Prayut managed to seize power smoothly from the Yingluck Shinawatra government in 2014 because Prawit had manoeuvred the support of the Army, especially the Eastern Tigers, from behind the scenes.

It is believed that Prawit’s influence and his manoeuvring skills managed to pull big-name politicians into PPRP and helped it win a lot of seats in the House. Prawit is also said to have made behind-the-scenes arrangements with small parties to join the PPRP-led coalition so Prayut could be made prime minister.

However, for the upcoming elections, Prawit apparently no longer wants to play the role of kingmaker. Instead, he wants to take the top role himself, albeit without any speeches.

‘Quietly’ powerful

Prawit has apparently been relatively less talkative since 2017 when it was rumoured that he had developed a heart or brain problem – rumours he strongly denied. Yet, he is often seen walking with assistance from his aides when he appears in public.

The 78-year-old’s age and health condition have put him in a negative light when it comes to leading the next government.

Prawit was born on August 11, 1945, to General Prasert Wongsuwan and Sanee Wongsuwan. He was the eldest of four sons.

He completed his secondary schooling at Saint Gabriel’s School and graduated from Class 6 of the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School and then Class 17 from the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy.

With the winning side

Though believed to have good ties with Thaksin, Prawit was appointed defence minister of then-PM Abhisit Vejjajiva in 2009.

Thaksin was ousted with a military coup on September 19, 2006.

Under Abhisit, Prawit was appointed to head the Centre for the Resolution of Emergency Situation, which was in charge of suppressing violent red-shirt protesters. He managed to disperse the months-long red-shirt protest in May 2010, and the press began referring to him by his nickname “Pom” to symbolise the words “Thalu Pom”, which means breaking through.

After reportedly engineering the 2014 coup and ousting Yingluck, Prawit became a member of the post-coup Cabinet. Soon after he was posted, he sparked a scandal. In December 2017, he was investigated by the National Anti-Corruption Commission for failing to declare several luxury watches he apparently owned. However, he was cleared later after he claimed the watches belonged to one of his friends.

It has yet to be seen if a general and kingmaker like Prawit, who does not like delivering speeches, will make it all the way to the top post in civilian politics.