Phumtham denies communist past, discusses defence minister role
Caretaker PM rejects claims he was a communist leader and confirms his commitment to national interest and public safety
Dismissing claims he was once part of the communist movement in Thailand, caretaker Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said he is perfectly qualified to take on the post of defence minister.
Phumtham was responding to claims made by former senator General Somjet Boonthanom, a former senior officer at the Royal Thai Armed Forces headquarters.
On Sunday, Somjet posted an article in the right-wing Facebook page, Thai Move Institute, criticising PM-elect Paetongtarn Shinawatra over reports that she was planning to appoint Phumtham as deputy PM and defence minister.
Somjet was chief of the secretariat of the Council of National Security, or the junta after the 2006 coup which ousted the government of Paetongtarn’s father, Thaksin Shinawatra.
“Ung-ing [Paetongtarn] does not care about the feelings of the military at all by planning to make Comrade Yai the defence minister,” said the first paragraph of Somjet’s article.
Referring to Phumtham as Comrade Yai, Somjet cited a memo from former 2nd Army Area commander General Sanan Marerngsit claiming that Comrade Yai played a leading role in the battle that the Thai communist forces waged against the military in the 1970s.
The memo apparently said that Phumtham was among the hundreds of leftist students who fled into the forests in the lower Northeast after hundreds of student activists were killed in the Thammasat University massacre on October 6, 1976. The memo also claimed that Phumtham played a key role in the battles against the troops until 1980 when the government offered amnesty to communist fighters if they surrendered.
Somjet said Sanan’s memo claimed that Phumtham and most other student activists chose not to surrender, but left the country to continue their studies overseas.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday before chairing the weekly Cabinet meeting, Phumtham said he was not certain if he will become the next defence minister, but he understands the concerns Somjet has for the institution he loves.
“I understand that Somjet and several former military officers have come out to criticise me because they love the institution they used to work for,” Phumtham said. “I want them to be less worried.”
He said he had fled into the forests to escape danger and violence, not because he supported communism. He added that military leaders at that time, did not give student activists an opportunity to return to society peacefully.
Phumtham said that after leaving his forest refuge, he did not get involved in political conflicts until he had proved over the past 50 years that he does not support communism.
“My priority is the people and the country. I believe I’m not in conflict with anybody, especially not the military,” he said.
“If I oversee the Defence Ministry, I will ensure that the armed forces can stay with the people and help them when they are in trouble. Please wait and see. I can talk to all the armed forces,” he said.
Phumtham added that the Cabinet list is ready, but Paetongtarn may make small changes by swapping certain posts before sending the list to the Palace for royal endorsement.
He said if His Majesty the King decides to approve the ministers’ appointment soon, they will be sworn in as soon as possible and the first Cabinet meeting will be held right away.
He added that the first Cabinet meeting will appoint a PM’s secretary-general because Prommin Lertsuridej is secretary-general to the caretaker prime minister. Refusing to confirm if the job will be given to Prommin again, Phumtham only said he was speaking about the process in general.
He said the new Cabinet should be ready to announce its policy in Parliament within 15 days, give or take a few days.
He added the Cabinet list was with Paetongtarn and he was not sure if she would seek an audience with His Majesty on Wednesday to submit the list.
