It's do or die for the government
The Nation
As the country's woes mount, public distrust and lack of confidence in the interim govt grows proportionately
Over the past six months, the Surayud government has been good at shooting itself in the foot. It has failed to do what it should be doing. Most of its work has backfired, from the attempt to legalise the two- and three-digit lottery, the imposition of the 30 per cent reserve requirement for capital inflows, the amendment to the foreign business law, to the flip-flop on iTV. The southern unrest is getting worse, with the degree of violence reaching new levels. The government's credibility is at a low ebb and the situation is worrisome indeed. Frustration is increasing as people don't know what to expect from the leadership, what the policy direction is, who is really in charge, or whether we will have an elected government on schedule.
On the political front, the Thai people are concerned about growing instability. Although Thaksin Shinawatra, the ousted prime minister, has been living in exile, the political divide inside the country remains deep and bitter. Whoever comes to power will likely treat opponents as enemies. National disunity will hurt Thailand for the foreseeable future.
How many "Surayud had better get his shit together or else" columns can The Nation produce?
To me it is ironic that everything that The Nation is lambasting this government for now are policies that it supported a few months ago.
Remember when all The Nation columnists went into seizures every time Thaksin or a foreign journalist criticized this government for its idiotic policies? They were breathless in their support of this government and its right-wing nationalist anti-foreign investment moves. They said everything that this government did was in the name of sufficiency theory, so it had to be good and wise, and Thaksin and those evil foreign investors wanted to destroy Thailand with their neo-liberal economic buy up Thailand policies.
Now, The Nation has done a 180 degree turn and supports the criticisms that it was once denouncing.
The Nation was wrong about the coup. Now it is backpedaling to look as if it is the champion of democracy and good governance. What a disgrace!
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