It's a curious coincidence that the crime-buster, who lost his job in 1991 after becoming a victim of a bombing, returns to the limelight with the task of solving the mystery behind these latest blasts. Seripisuth is confident he can crack the case, even though 177 other senior police officers have thrown in the towel. The public will have to keep its fingers firmly crossed that he can live up to expectations.

At the height of the 1990 power struggle between the Chatichai Choonhavan government and the military clique of Chulachomklao Class 5 graduates, Seripisuth (then known as Maj General Seri) was commander of the Crime Suppression Division.

Apart from openly acting in defiance of the powerful military clique, he also engaged in a bitter feud with a senior police officer who had the military behind him.

In broad daylight, an unidentified man threw a grenade at Seri's division headquarters inflicting considerable physical damage but no human casualties. It was, and still is, the first and only violent attack on the CSD headquarters. In hindsight, Seripisuth says he is certain his feud with the clique had motivated the bombing. The culprit remains at large to this day.

A coup took place a few months after the bombing and Seripisuth was transferred to a less prominent post. Subsequently, he changed his name.

Will history repeat itself? In the next few months, Seripisuth may trumpet his identification of the bombing masterminds - even though there won't be any arrests due to insufficient evidence.

Food for thought

Democrat Party deputy spokesman Thepthai Senpong, who's quite friendly with some hacks, handed out fried pork and sticky rice to journalists covering the electoral fraud cases at the Constitution Court.

Some reporters were worried - not about the ethics of receiving gifts from politicians, but about the health issues: At worst Thepthai's generosity could lead to heart disease; at best, obesity. Thai Rak Thai's Somsak Toraksa seemed to have noticed the unhealthy feast provided by the Democrats, and tried to outdo his old foe. He sent a large bag of fruit to reporters he's known for a long time.

This is no bad thing for reporters who, day in and day out, have to listen to the lengthy hearings. At least they don't have to worry about catering. On the other hand, it's better that they avoid being accused of taking bribes in the form of food.

To play safe, they have two choices: either to refuse any food from either party, or to gobble up what's on offer from both the Democrats and TRT.

In the limelight

"Syndromes and a Century" hasn't been released in Thailand yet and we don't know if it will be. But the good news is that the film, by Apichatphong Weerasethakul, has been nominated for three categories in the upcoming Asian Film Awards on March 20 in Hong Kong.

Apichatphong is vying for the Best Director award along with five other filmmakers: Hong Sang-Soo from South Korea ("Woman on the Beach"), Jia Zhangke from China ("Still Life"), Jafar Panahi from Iran ("Offside"), Johnnie To from Hong Kong ("Exiled") and Tsai Ming-liang from Taiwan ("I Don't Want to Sleep Alone").

Another two nominations for "Syndromes and a Century" go to cameraman Sayombhu Mukdeeprom and editor Lee Chatametikool.

Apichatpong originally made the film for the New Crowned Hope Festival in Vienna last year, which celebrated Mozart's 250th birthday. The film has been showing at film festivals around the world for the past year. Hopefully, it will win a trophy or two to warrant a screening in Thailand.

Out of the limelight

Congratulations to Prabda Yoon on his nomination for best screenplay for "Invisible Waves", which is the only other Thai film to make the cut at the Asian Film Awards. He may keep a low profile nowadays, but his work speaks volumes about him.

Prabda, a Seawrite award winner, remains active in the film industry. Although he prefers to avoid the limelight, his fans can always catch up with him through his blogs.

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 veen@nationgroup.com