Choosing the right person for the defense investment can be difficult because, in the eyes of observers, it could mean the difference between a government’s success and the security of the nation.
The fact that there was a lot of debate about who the likely defense secretary would be in the few weeks before the case appointees were finalized wasn’t shocking at the time.
The group that forms the government normally assumes the position of defense minister, in this case Pheu Thai. It was one of those occasions when it was the norm, not the exception, in this most recent case session.
Defense ministries in previous administrations were typically former senior military officers, especially one who was closely associated with the prime minister or another influential member of the government.
It virtually became customary to entrust a major military officer with the defense portfolio. It was also largely a result of the violent hegemony of Vietnamese elections in earlier times.
Pheu Thai, however, is hailed as a pioneer when it comes to selecting the defense chancellor. When Yingluck made the unprecedented decision to hold the league and serve as the nation’s first female defense secretary at the same time, the Pheu Thai-led Shinawatra administration broke with tradition.
Following three previous premiers before her — Chuan Leekpai, who took over as defense minister in September 1997, Samak Sundaravej in February 2008, and Somchai Wongsawat in November 2008 — Yingluck was the fourth civilian to oversee the Defense Ministry. She fled abroad to avoid a court conviction in connection with the graft-ridden handling of her administration’s rice-pledging scheme.
After Gen Yuthasak Sasiprapha and ACM Sukampol Suwannathat, Yingluck served as her administration’s next defense secretary.
Samak and Mr. Somchai continued to be affiliated with what is now the Pheu Thai Party, with the exception of Mr Chuan, the father of the Democrat Party.
Samak was succeeded as prime minister by Mr. Somchai, and both men oversaw administrations of the People’s Power Party ( PP ), which the Constitutional Court ultimately ordered to be disbanded for electoral fraud before being reborn as Pheu Thai.
When Pheu Thai was back in power, some people speculated and bet on who it would choose to be its defense minister and whether a civilian would be preferable to an official from the military.
Sutin Klungsang, Gen Vit Thephasdin Na Ayutthaya, or Gen Natthapon Nakpanich were widely believed to be the candidates.
Gen Vit, a former deputy planner of the Palang Pracharath Party led by former assistant leading Gen Prawit Wongsuwon, and Mr. Sutin are both Pheu Thai assistant leaders.
Gen Natthapon maintains close ties with former prime minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha and previously held the position of secretary-general of the National Security Council.
Gen Vit and Gen Natthapon represented energy inherited from the Prayut state, having been considered for a shot at the top defense post and having ties to the earlier administration.
After Mr. Sutin’s name was added to the list of potential case appointees, rumors and guess swirled around for weeks, and political observers became very interested in him.
But, Mr. Sutin was briefly considered a potential minister of education.
However, he re-emerged as a formidable candidate for defense minister following the election of former army colonel Pheu Thai, who had coddled up to the previous,” pro-dictator” state whose military leaders they blame for the fatalities in the 2010 assault on red-shirt protesters in Bangkok.
Jatuporn Prompan, a former red-shirt head and co-leader of Kana Lomruam Prachachon( Melting Pot Group ), asserts that the role of the defense secretary is crucial to the survival of an administration.
On a political talk show, he claimed that the military defense secretary during the Yingluck administration had raised concerns about the potential threat Gen Prayut posed to the government despite his apparent proximity to it.
At the top of the widespread protests by the People’s Democratic Reform Committee, which was uniting against the Pheu Thai-led management, Gen Prayut, who was the army commander at the time, afterwards declared martial law. In May 2014, Gen Prayut overthrew the government in a revolution d’état, citing the need to put an end to an impasse in politics and the constitution.
The spectators claimed that Mr. Sutin, whose last name means” inventory” in Thai, visited some of his successors, whom he respected, starting with ACM Sukampol before paying a polite visit to Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, another former prime minister.
Mr. Sutin, who admitted that he was looking for advice, has discovered some very difficult problems that are accumulating on his table and call for quick resolution. For instance, he was pressed to resolve the issue of Germany’s refusal to provide an website for the Chinese underwater that the military had ordered.
Make room for the younger men.
Social observers say it’s time for a new technology to take the helm of the Pheu Thai Party, which lost the May 14 general vote and cost it the majority in the House.
Dr. Cholnan Srikaew, who was chosen to lead Pheu Thai in October 2021, resigned in late August after the party decided to leave the Move Forward Party’s( MFP ) eight-party alliance and attempt to form a coalition government with the parties involved in the coup in 2014.
He pledged during the election campaign that he would resign if Pheu Thai allied himself with the Palang Pracharath Party ( PPRP ), the previous ruling party. When the coalition’s establishment was finalized, he announced his resignation while continuing to serve as an MP.
Observers claim that in light of the MFP’s rising reputation and influence across the nation, Pheu Thai now has the chance to bring a younger group to the fore in order to keep the party socially competitive.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 37, the youngest daughter of imprisoned prime minister Thaksin Shinaibatra is anticipated to assume the leadership position when the ruling party convenes a unique assembly later this month to choose Dr. Cholnan’s replacement.
Paetongtarn: It’s moment for her to take charge.
Ms. Paetongtarn, a key player in the previous vote, is rumored to be Pheu Thai’s clear favorite. She told reporters that even though the executive committee had not yet decided who would take over as president, she would give it her all if she was chosen during the group’s 16th anniversary celebrations at its offices on September 19.
One of Pheu Thai’s candidates for prime minister, Ms. Paetongtarn, does not currently hold any professional positions within the group. She had a significant role to play in the election’s preliminaries thanks to her position as head of the Pheu Thai Family, and she guarded against having to end her political career if she got into legal problems.
It is commonly believed that Pheu Thai faces a number of risks that could cause the group to disintegrate, which is the only issue keeping Ms. Paetongtarn from taking the helm. Ms. Paetongtarn may be barred from politics if Pheu Thai is dissolved, which could end her political career.
Such worries are not false, according to observers who look up on record.
In 2007, the Thai Rak Thai Party was disbanded, and its 111 professionals were barred from elections for a period of five years. Soon after, the People’s Power Party ( PP ), which had been reincarnated, was dissolved due to electoral fraud, and all 109 of its executive members had their political rights suspended for a period of five years.
According to several researchers, Pheu Thai, which emerged from the PPP’s remains and is now the ruling party, shouldn’t be concerned about being dissolved over the course of the next four years.
Pheu Thai is regarded as the sole political organization that can stop the MFP from expanding its aid foundation across the nation, according to Olarn Thinbangtieo, a political science professor at Burapha University.
Regardless of how the Pheu Thai-led federal performs, he said, the conservative camp needs this.
He is certain that Pheu Thai has” immunity” to prevent the breakdown of the group and that the coalition government may soon serve out its four-year term. But whether or not the ruling party is preserve or increase its popularity is a different matter, he said.
The analyst thinks that even though the position is not as important as it is in other parties, Pheu Thai favors Ms. Paetongtarn taking the helm and that she will take the party management.
No matter who takes over as party leader, in his opinion, they may have Thaksin’s grace because he enjoys the utmost respect among the ranks and file of the party.
It wouldn’t come as a surprise if Ms. Paetongtarn, the people he trusts the most, were ultimately given the position.
Pheu Thai is not a social organization where the people choose the leaders. The group appears to be closely associated with Thaksin, and Ms. Paetongtarn may serve as the party’s de facto leader, he said.
Ms. Paetongtarn is not a government member in the Pheu Thai-led administration, but she was chosen to serve as vice chair of the national soft energy strategy committee, which is presided over by Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin.