Thailand CANNOT ENDURE as a 'mai pen rai' country

The greatest irony is that there is no guarantee that a return to electoral politics will raise the hope of these problems being more effectively tackled. A military coup can’t possibly address the country’s deep-rooted issues. In fact, a command-and-control political system, no matter how it is brought about, is always disastrous to the attempt to get the country out of an economic coma. All hope is therefore placed on a return to an election that will provide proper checks and balances to national governance. If past experience is any indication, that assurance could be quite elusive as well.

The list of these “serious symptoms” is long and will get longer if not resolved with clear action plans that involve people from all walks of life and political leanings. Some of the items on the “People’s National Agenda” include:

 The ageing society: Officially, there is recognition of the issue. A department within the Public Health Ministry is even labelled the Senior Citizens Unit, but there is a lack of a comprehensive programme that can coordinate work across all ministries. Greater health expenditures and fewer young people coming into the workforce are only two of the obvious problems that will sap the nation’s resources beyond existing capacities in the economic, social and political spheres.

 Lack of innovation: Government funding of research-and-development remains abysmal. The private sector’s R&D activities are uncoordinated. SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) get lip service from all the relevant government agencies and the private sector’s professional groups. Start-ups suffer from lack of support from anywhere. Thailand’s competitiveness in the regional landscape is eroding rapidly without any genuine efforts to boost innovation.

 The bureaucracy continues its downward spiral. Haunted by the populist politics of the past decade, the best and brightest technocrats have shrunk in number and few are left to challenge the status quo. The country’s best minds aren’t joining officialdom, preferring to work for the private sector, where they can be more independent and innovative, or to pursue their individual dreams of becoming the new generation of entrepreneurs, as opposed to the traditional sense of job security, by joining the bureaucracy.

 Corruption remains rampant despite all the official talk of cracking down on all aspects of “conflict of interests” within the political and bureaucratic agencies. “Knowing who” is still more important than “knowing how” in getting things done in Thai society. 

Because of the prevalence of corrupt practices, law enforcement is weak and inconsistent, resulting in double-standard implementation of the law. The principle of rule of law is therefore never taken seriously.

 Education reform remains elusive. There is no shortage of research into how the country should revamp its education system. Hundreds of committees in various forms and shapes have been set up, abolished, reappointed and dissolved. Tonnes of paperwork on recommendations have been compiled, but the main culprit remains the lack of political will to shake things up, which would inevitably put a dent in vested interests.

None of these issues will be addressed in any effective way by the NRC, or the new steering commission that will replace it, as long as the country’s political power remains in the hands of a small group of people, be they in military uniform or electoral mafias who can still use money, power and influence to stay in power or win elections.

Unless citizens at all levels get involved in participatory democracy, backed up by an effective and all-embracing civil society, the “mai pen rai” mentality will reign supreme and the country’s political and social health will continue to deteriorate. There is no light at the end of the tunnel.

Without real action to reverse the nation’s worsening malaise, the decade-old social and political conflicts that have undermined our democratic institutions will not go away, no matter how many coups or elections are staged.