Not so, as we have witnessed all along. The prime minister's latest act is to appoint two more deputy ministers for the Agriculture and Interior ministries, despite earlier public expectations that he would embark upon a sweeping reshuffle to achieve results-oriented performance and accomplish the tasks necessary before directing the country back to the electoral political process.

Adding two more members to the Cabinet will hardly make any difference as long as most of the ministers are not performing their duties and fulfilling the hard tasks of restoring the country's political, economic and social structure. The results so far can be gauged by the gradual plunge in the government's popularity and public confidence in the future of the country.

The substantial decline in consumer spending and private investment that are seriously forcing the national economy towards a long slump are strong indicators that the government has fallen short of the perceived objectives and what was expected by the public.

The prime minister must have heard the loud public complaints about his non-performing Cabinet members and that he should seriously do something, not only to show effective leadership but also to get tangible results in setting the right course for the country's political future.

His response not to effect drastic changes by removing Cabinet ministers with poor performance and replacing them with hard-charging and hands-on members, which would have given this government the chance to go down in history and left people wishing that it could stay on longer instead of letting in the politicians.

We may never understand why Surayud does not feel the pressure to do whatever is necessary while his government's term lasts. His promise to shake up incompetent Cabinet members will be like flogging dead horses. If they were that really good at doing things, they would not have needed his prodding or public complaints about mediocre performance to get started.

The public's sense of uncertainty over the intention of the government has intensified. Why have the efforts of the investigation committee into corrupt practices not been given the strong support they should have had? Committee members have complained that their requests for cooperation from civil servants were never complied with. More disappointingly, the prime minister has appeared aloof all along.  

It could be that the Cabinet members don't care much about their future because they are not politicians with the need to seek support from voters. They intend to continue until their last day in office without making enemies who could exact reprisals when they regain power in government.

The crisis in the three southernmost provinces has yet to see the right formula to end it. The casualties and fatalities from daily terrorist attacks are mounting, while the government's attempts to win cooperation from local community leaders has yet to bear fruit.

The acts of terrorism are of the same pattern as elsewhere in Southeast Asia, with the difference being the degree of violence. The deterioration we face probably exceeds the problems seen in Aceh or Mindanao, and the trend is not encouraging at all.

On the political front, the government might feel less pressure now that activist groups are focusing their attacks on members of the Council for National Security (CNS), who have been targeted one by one with negative and smear campaigns without any effective countermove or response.

In the next few days, activist and pressure groups intend to flex their muscles with a protest gathering of several thousands with heavy funding from elements serving politicians in the erstwhile Thaksin government. The CNS and the government are well aware of such arrangements, but there is not much they can do.

What's more, these groups achieved some level of success when they managed to drive a wedge into the already flimsy relationship between the CNS and the government, despite repeated denials from both sides. A crack, though well concealed, does exist. And friction among CNS members themselves could be brought into the open when their leader General Sonthi Boonyaratglin retires as the Army chief.

As of now, there is no clear indication from the government on what it intends to do with the extra Cabinet members. Prioritisation of pressing issues has not been enforced, as ministers continue to pursue their own pet projects. If the prime minister continues to do what he has been doing, or chooses not to do whatever needs to be done, we cannot hope for better days ahead.

Whether there will be more days of political trouble or turbulence depends on the way the government responds to the coming protests. Poor handling could leave it facing stronger challenges if ragtag groups with funds to attract rural villagers to Bangkok can eventually mobilise a strong crowd and force a fateful bargain with the powers that be.

The government and the CNS should have seen the trend. They have only themselves to blame for repeated failures in damage control.

Sopon Onkgara