International Herald Tribune on Pridiyathorn
BANGKOK: Pridiyathorn Devakula, the second-ranking member of Thailand's military-appointed government, abruptly resigned Wednesday, laying bare bitter disputes between cabinet ministers and further shaking confidence in the country's ability to make a smooth return to democracy.
Pridiyathorn, who was appointed deputy prime minister and finance minister after the Sept. 19 coup, told reporters that he would leave office on Thursday.
"After the resignation takes effect, I will stay home," Pridiyathorn said after reading a brief statement.
To some in Thailand, Pridiyathorn was the cornerstone of respectability and experience in a government handpicked by generals. To others, he was responsible for flip-flops and was the mastermind of measures that restricted foreign ownership and inward flows of foreign capital.
Bloomberg On Pridiyathorn
Thai Finance Minister Quits After Cabinet Disputes (Update4)
By Beth Jinks and Anuchit Nguyen
Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Thailand's Finance Minister Pridiyathorn Devakula resigned, dealing a further blow to the military-backed government's credibility with investors.
Pridiyathorn told reporters in Bangkok he disagreed with ``some'' Cabinet ministers and this month's appointment of Somkid Jatusripitak, former deputy to Thailand's deposed premier, as an economic adviser. Somkid resigned after a week in the job.
``This is a strong setback,'' said V. Anantha-Nageswaran, head of research for Asia and the Middle East at Julius Baer & Co. ``For every step forward, they seem to be taking two steps backward.''
No replacement was named for Pridiyathorn, a former Bank of Thailand governor who was tapped as finance minister to buoy confidence after a Sept. 19 military coup. The central bank today cut interest rates for the second time this year to bolster economic confidence, rattled after the bungled imposition of capital controls in December triggered the stock market's steepest fall in 16 years.
``It doesn't bode well for the government,'' said Warut Siwasariyanon, director of research at Globlex Securities Ltd. in Bangkok. ``It will be very bad for investor confidence.''
3 comments:
What did he do in 5 months?
- Capital controls
- Foreign business law amendments
- Put the government in the red for 2007 and 2008. First time since 2003 we've had a deficit.
- Backed down to Jaruvan
I don’t want to kick a fallen man, but if you evaluate people based on results, he was pretty much a disaster.
And you missed thin skinned for a politician.
Hard to believe that Sondhi and the Somkid appointment caused him to quit.
i saw him driving out of hte ministry of finance one night...he has a mercedes cls 600 with the license plate 99.
anyone in that high of a post showing that kind of unabashed braggadocio deserves to lose his job.
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