For the past month or so, hardly a week has passed without speculation that perhaps yet another coup d'etat is in the making.

Such news is normally accompanied by a denial from a senior member of the military junta which staged the coup last year or even by the junta-installed Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont.

Even those fed up with politics can't deny the fact that fear of yet another coup has become part of daily conversation and a legitimate daily news staple to be fed to the public.

Undeniably, this slippery road towards coup, double coup, counter-coup and more coups is a by-product of last year's September 19 coup, which claimed to be a "legitimate" military takeover to restore democracy by ousting abusive premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

The action reopened the Pandora's Box of the coup cycle, which was supposed to have ended for good after the 1991 coup that led to a popular revolt the following year.

Some may say that staging a coup to rid the Kingdom of political ills is a legitimate enterprise, but whether it will solve, or has solved, any problem is another matter, while such an

action can only invite more generals and colonels to find a legitimate excuse to stage more coups in the future.

Ironically, the fear of another coup has itself become a tool used by the junta to convince the public that they should sacrifice more civil liberties by not opposing the military rulers and their appointed regime - or rejecting the junta-sponsored draft constitution - because a new batch of coup makers may not be as altruistic as they claim to be.

The junta does not see that by entering politics through staging a coup, it has ended up with a conflict of interest.

Judges last week rejected proposals made under the draft charter for them to play a significant political role by selecting senators, appointing leading members of the so-called independent organisations and more. They should be duly praised for correctly realising that such powers would compromise their independence, impartiality and integrity, causing a conflict of interest.

On the other hand, the junta and the military in general see no problem about playing a double role by staging a coup, installing a government and securing prominent posts on state agencies' boards of directors - and creating a conflict of interest which they have so persistently denied.

It is becoming increasingly hard for them to retreat back to their barracks. The latest news is that General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, the junta chief and chairman of the Council for National Security (CNS), is expected to retain directorship of the Internal Security Operations Command after he ends his term as Army chief.

On one TV news bulletin a couple of weeks ago, Sonthi appeared early in the programme as CNS chairman before later featuring in another report in his role as Army chief - a pretty confusing situation.

The military in general are also trying to play a double role in society, exemplified by their help with easing traffic problems during the Songkran festival.

Put simply, while the junta has no clue, the judges seem to be aware that conflicting roles can only lead to a conflict of interest. The junta still insists it has no conflict of interest.

Sonthi has also said repeatedly that he has no political ambition and doesn't plan to enter politics after the election scheduled for December. Well, the truth is, by leading a coup, Sonthi has brought not just himself but the whole military back into the heart of Thai politics.

If Sonthi and the military are not playing politics now, after seizing control of the state, then what exactly are they playing?

Pravit Rojanaphruk

The Nation