lonelywombat
October 29th, 2006, 09:38
Pojaman proves a formidable political 'femme fatale'
With the blaze of publicity over her 15-minute hush-hush meeting with Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda on Thursday, Khunying Pojaman Shinawatra achieved what nobody else in the land could do in that much time - a total demolition of the credibility of those who are against her husband Thaksin, now enduring a forced exile in London.
Her act was indeed almost a coup de grace for the coup-makers, confirming her formidable position as a shrewd political femme fatale who can manipulate a situation to her full advantage, making the Council for National Security and the Surayud government look like greenhorns in a high-stakes game plan.
It was a well-schemed move to wear down the charisma and stature of General Prem, no matter how one tries to assess the damage done to the respected statesman, who was also renowned as a fine tactician during his years in the army.
Pojaman's entire stunt sent a strong message to both the CNS and the Surayud administration that they were no match for her and that she did not consider them worthy enough for serious discussion about the future of her husband.
She also demonstrated to former and current Thai Rak Thai Party members that her clout and well-timed strategic move made her deserving of the party leadership, not to mention her massive war chest, which can propel her and the party to a win in any election.
The public was shocked by the brief encounter. The entire episode was not only inexplicable but also insensible. A lot of people even felt betrayed. How could Prem agree to meet her and allow her to steal the limelight? His subsequent statement that there was nothing of much substance to the meeting had to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Like it or not, Prem had been taken for a free ride by one of his aides who is connected to Pojaman through distant kinship, and it was Pojaman who laughed her head off all the way from Prem's residence to her plush mansion in Thon Buri, totally satisfied that her charm could still captivate the hearts of whomever she met.
The 15-minute huddle made Pojaman extraordinarily famous but left her kind host in an utterly damaging predicament and with diminishing public faith in his judgement. This is not the first time that Prem's aides have played a manipulative game for the benefit of Thaksin's political moves.
Prem professed to be unperturbed by the public uproar and tried to cut short reporters' questions over the intent of the meeting and the content of the talks. After all, the scene must have been the last thing the public expected to happen. But it did happen and the full extent of the damage has yet to be assessed.
A scarier thought is that this was only Pojaman's first open offensive and she made fair headway, leaving the CNS generals and Surayud's crowd in disarray and scurrying to find ways to control the damage. She has the potential to spring more surprises to dazzle and ridicule the opponents of her husband soon enough.
Somehow, her move gave rise to suspicions that there is a well-coordinated move to score political points and repair the damage done to Thaksin while making the coup-makers and the Surayud government look more and more like villains with a greed for power.
Coincidence or not, another well-calculated scheme to cultivate friendship and an air of camaraderie paid off handsomely on a soccer field and appeared in the broadcast and print media. It was the turn of CNS chairman General Sonthi Boonyaratglin to further compound the already pathetic situation with his own poor judgement.
The Army chief took part in a friendly football match with former national players. But one among them was not a national player but a notorious politician who had just defected from Thai Rak Thai Party, Somsak Thepsuthin. He emerged the winner politically, while Sonthi did not look very much different from Prem in terms of damaged stature.
The credibility of the CNS and the government is now on a slippery and treacherous path towards a ruinous end following the lack of prompt and decisive action against several Thaksin cabinet members disgraced by massive graft and misdeeds.
Instead of trying to reverse the negative trend and salvage the situation, the CNS and the government seem to be engaging in various acts that are against the public's expectations and desire for substantive achievements according to the claims made for staging the coup.
After a little more than five weeks in power, the CNS and the government appear as if they are already on the way down. The public confidence that they will be able to rebuild the nation and put it back on the right track is fast eroding while crooks roam free with their spoils and hidden wealth.
Sopon Onkgara
With the blaze of publicity over her 15-minute hush-hush meeting with Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda on Thursday, Khunying Pojaman Shinawatra achieved what nobody else in the land could do in that much time - a total demolition of the credibility of those who are against her husband Thaksin, now enduring a forced exile in London.
Her act was indeed almost a coup de grace for the coup-makers, confirming her formidable position as a shrewd political femme fatale who can manipulate a situation to her full advantage, making the Council for National Security and the Surayud government look like greenhorns in a high-stakes game plan.
It was a well-schemed move to wear down the charisma and stature of General Prem, no matter how one tries to assess the damage done to the respected statesman, who was also renowned as a fine tactician during his years in the army.
Pojaman's entire stunt sent a strong message to both the CNS and the Surayud administration that they were no match for her and that she did not consider them worthy enough for serious discussion about the future of her husband.
She also demonstrated to former and current Thai Rak Thai Party members that her clout and well-timed strategic move made her deserving of the party leadership, not to mention her massive war chest, which can propel her and the party to a win in any election.
The public was shocked by the brief encounter. The entire episode was not only inexplicable but also insensible. A lot of people even felt betrayed. How could Prem agree to meet her and allow her to steal the limelight? His subsequent statement that there was nothing of much substance to the meeting had to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Like it or not, Prem had been taken for a free ride by one of his aides who is connected to Pojaman through distant kinship, and it was Pojaman who laughed her head off all the way from Prem's residence to her plush mansion in Thon Buri, totally satisfied that her charm could still captivate the hearts of whomever she met.
The 15-minute huddle made Pojaman extraordinarily famous but left her kind host in an utterly damaging predicament and with diminishing public faith in his judgement. This is not the first time that Prem's aides have played a manipulative game for the benefit of Thaksin's political moves.
Prem professed to be unperturbed by the public uproar and tried to cut short reporters' questions over the intent of the meeting and the content of the talks. After all, the scene must have been the last thing the public expected to happen. But it did happen and the full extent of the damage has yet to be assessed.
A scarier thought is that this was only Pojaman's first open offensive and she made fair headway, leaving the CNS generals and Surayud's crowd in disarray and scurrying to find ways to control the damage. She has the potential to spring more surprises to dazzle and ridicule the opponents of her husband soon enough.
Somehow, her move gave rise to suspicions that there is a well-coordinated move to score political points and repair the damage done to Thaksin while making the coup-makers and the Surayud government look more and more like villains with a greed for power.
Coincidence or not, another well-calculated scheme to cultivate friendship and an air of camaraderie paid off handsomely on a soccer field and appeared in the broadcast and print media. It was the turn of CNS chairman General Sonthi Boonyaratglin to further compound the already pathetic situation with his own poor judgement.
The Army chief took part in a friendly football match with former national players. But one among them was not a national player but a notorious politician who had just defected from Thai Rak Thai Party, Somsak Thepsuthin. He emerged the winner politically, while Sonthi did not look very much different from Prem in terms of damaged stature.
The credibility of the CNS and the government is now on a slippery and treacherous path towards a ruinous end following the lack of prompt and decisive action against several Thaksin cabinet members disgraced by massive graft and misdeeds.
Instead of trying to reverse the negative trend and salvage the situation, the CNS and the government seem to be engaging in various acts that are against the public's expectations and desire for substantive achievements according to the claims made for staging the coup.
After a little more than five weeks in power, the CNS and the government appear as if they are already on the way down. The public confidence that they will be able to rebuild the nation and put it back on the right track is fast eroding while crooks roam free with their spoils and hidden wealth.
Sopon Onkgara