I do not understand this brouhaha or the debate over whether the next prime minister should or should not be elected, when in fact we never have had a directly elected prime minister in 74 years of so-called Thai democracy. The closest we came was when the 1997 Constitution was in force and elections were held under its provision. But even then it was not a direct election. The voters voted for the parties of their choice and not the person as such, and the party with the most votes in both field and party-list elections nominated someone of its own to be prime minister. And that "someone" did not even have to be a party leader. The only requirement was that that particular "someone" must be a listed candidate.

On the other hand, it has been proven beyond doubt that prime ministers of the recent past who were "outsiders" performed with far better effectiveness, and they did so with an impeccable degree of honesty, when compared with prime ministers who came from "within the system". General Prem Tinsulanonda and Anand Panyarachun are the proof of this assertion. And despite the lack of clear-cut evidence of accomplishment, in the short time he has been in office General Surayud Chulanont has already beaten Thaksin Shinawatra in terms of popularity as he is seen to be a man of ability and, more importantly, integrity and honesty.

It is generally believed that prime ministers from the outside are not bound by any vested interests or partisan considerations and therefore can better serve the nation and its people. Both General Prem and Anand left legacies upon which democracy could flourish. But these were sadly torn apart by the abuse of succeeding politicians who were unabashed in serving themselves and in taking care of their greed.

If it is agreed that the prime minister must be an elected MP, the tradition has always been that he must also be from the party that has the majority in Parliament. Then again, we remember that in 1975, MR Kukrit Pramoj, with only 18 MPs under his wing, succeeded in wresting control of the government from his elder brother MR Seni Pramoj who, together with the Democrats, had 72 seats. When this happened, the wish of the majority of the voters had been denied. Who could ensure that this would not happen again if we were to go back to the old system?

Of course, it would be ideal to have a prime minister who, regardless of party affiliation, is elected directly by the people. But this would be more like a presidential system, which is not accepted and is even deemed anathema by the people in a constitutional monarchy such as Thailand. But there is the contention that direct election of the PM represents a true democracy. In this case, just ask the United States. The American president is not elected by popular vote as is commonly understood, but he is chosen by a group of people who are collectively known as the "electoral college" and who do not even have to listen to who or what the American people want.

Prachyadavi Tavedikul

Bangkok

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BOT needs to rein in the baht to protect Thai exporters

I'm surprised that people with the Bank of Thailand keep telling reporters that the rapidly rising value of the Thai baht has not become too much higher than the currencies of Thailand's competitors for food and other exports. I'm convinced that this has damaged the ability to compete for most exporters of products from Thailand.The baht has increased rapidly against its major competitors throughout Asia within the last year and especially in the last three months.

Statements to the media by Bank of Thailand representatives are also misleading when they say that Thailand's currency is belatedly recovering from the financial crisis, unlike those for most other competitors. All other major competitors have gradually recovered their values in the previous four years; the baht, however, in the last 12 months has soared well past the others.

The Bank of Thailand representatives have said that currency speculation is a major cause for this inflation of the baht. Yet the action they have taken so far has obviously done little, if anything, to stop these speculators.

Singapore this year put an end to upward speculation on its dollar by consistently and vigorously selling its currency. The Bank of Thailand needs to do this now to send a strong message to speculators that they should look elsewhere for a quick profit. This will not deplete Thailand's foreign currency reserves. When the baht is sold on the international exchanges for dollars, euros or yen, this increases Thailand's reserves of hard currency.

The representatives of the Bank of Thailand need to do more to substantiate their statements with relevant data from reliable, independent sources. Above all, those who make policy with the Bank of Thailand should stop saying that it's simply a matter of buying currency futures or in cutting costs. How can they cut costs other than by paying even less to the workers on Thai farms and fisheries? In the meantime, I advise anyone not to start a new export venture in Thailand. They will be dealing with an adverse monetary climate.

Daniel Stephan

Chiang Mai

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iTV ruling let the culprit walk away with his pockets full

The Supreme Administrative Court ruled on Wednesday December 13 in favour of the PM's Office, subjecting iTV to the original concession fee, about Bt1 billion per year, and allowing it to reverse the news programming ratio from 65 per cent to 70 per cent. And the one who did the crime and pocketed the difference walks. With full pockets.

John Francis Lee

Chiang Rai

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Motorists should not fall prey to the new 'fuel-pill' scams

Just to pass some information to you. The new "Fuel Freedom International" scam has arrived in Bangkok. A seminar was held last Sunday at the Chaophya Park Hotel to lure people from Bangkok to "put a pill into the gas tank of your car, to improve the fuel mileage it gets from gasoline, as well as reduce emissions". This is a scam.

Reports from many sources on the Internet show that, on average, with the pill in the tank, there is actually a drop in fuel economy. There is no perceivable increase in acceleration or the ability to perform at-speed overtaking.

"MPG Caps", or any of the other "pill-in-your-fuel-tank" products are the cheapest and easiest-to-find "miracle cures" for increased power and gas mileage. The products are simple. They are normally pills, in a pop-out wrapper just like medical pills, or in a bottle. They smell foul and the manufacturers claim that one pill per 100 litres of fuel will give you increased power and performance whilst at the same time cutting your fuel consumption (in some cases they claim by up to 30 per cent). Explanations range from "organic engine conditioner that improves fuel economy and power by creating a micro-thin coating on the combustion chamber allowing fuel to burn better" all the way up to the fantastical "nano-technology particles that seek out and change the molecular structure of refined gasoline to make it burn more efficiently".

Wow. Impressive stuff. But as always, it's nonsense. Typically, these pills are biodegradable plant or sugar compounds laced with food colouring and some odd petrochemical to give them an "official" smell. They don't work and are simply yet another scam to part you from your money. Texas recently closed down Bioperformance Inc for fraud linked to their magic fuel pill. Maybe you want to look into this as news or even put out a scam warning.

Rudiger

Bangkok

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Thai universities are not producing quality graduates

Although I am, in theory, against the commercialisation of higher education, in a developing country such as Thailand universities must serve the marketplace so that the country can continue to grow both economically and intellectually.

Having taught at both rajabhat and major public universities in Thailand, and having watched thousands upon thousands of students graduate with little or no skill within their major programme of study, I've come to the conclusion that it is only through "fierce competition" that Thai universities will finally be forced to get their act together, develop proper curricula, fire incompetent instructors and provide students with the education and skills they need to succeed in work and in life.

Dave Littleton

Chon Buri

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Alumni donors wary of giving to inefficient alma maters

Re: "Model of US universities won't work in Thailand", Letters, December 14.

Tunyatape Suwanjindar's challenge to Burin Kantabutra's belief in supporting needy students in Thailand was thought provoking. His main contention was the lack of a Thai tradition of financial support from the alumni. He suggested the state build universities as standard bearers. The existing ones can serve the rich.

First, whose fault is it that Chulalongkorn and Thammasat, with all their rich alumni, do not get much in the way of donations? Among the recent lists of wealthy Thai individuals, I can venture to guess that the majority are graduates of either Chulalongkorn or Thammasat. Is it because of a lack of gratification for what the universities taught them? Is it also due to the universities' high-horse attitude? Is it their poor financial management due to red tape?

I personally know of people who are itching to donate yet do not know where or how to. They are also not comfortable with the management. These individuals already donate to churches and temples. Donations to universities offer the better prospect of one seeing the fruits of one's investment in one's own lifetime.

I have yet to know of one university, newly built, in any country, that has immediately become a standard-bearer. The leading universities are long established and are incessantly challenged as to being the best. To be accepted as a standard bearer, your best has to be shown and proven. In my opinion, change within the leading universities to accommodate low-income students would be more practical than having to set up new and "ideal" universities for the poor. The mind-set of the Thai "Ivy Leagues" has to change to focus on getting money from grateful alumni - and put it to good use. An effective scheme for student loans, managed by an honest financial institution, would be an added source of help. This is part of the US and UK models, which have been well tested and successful.

Songdej Praditsmanont

Bangkok