Deal could test relations with UK

Former premier Thaksin Shinawatra

Once in a blue moon, a man like Thaksin Shinawatra comes along - powerful enough to shatter the political landscape of a country and rich enough that whenever he makes a business deal, it's bound to have international ramifications.

In fact, one of the very things that led to his political downfall was the sale of his family's stake in Shin Corp to Temasek Holdings, the investment arm of the Singapore government. Among other things, he was accused of not paying taxes on the deal.

There were so many political landmines, but neither Thaksin nor the Singaporeans saw them coming. Bilateral ties went into a tailspin as the Thai public cried foul over the purchase of what they considered national assets. On the diplomatic front, relations between Thailand and Singapore hit a new low when Singaporean deputy premier Shunmugam Jayakumar received Thaksin while he was on a "private visit" to the island-state.

The dust has yet to settle and all parties are still picking up the pieces. But that hasn't stopped Thaksin from throwing his money around, making noises here and there, and hiring an expensive public relations firm to keep him in the spotlight.

Today, the exiled billionaire-turned-politician is on another warpath. This time around, he is taking his money all the way to the other side of the globe - England, to be exact - where a football club awaits him.

On the same day that prosecutors in Bangkok formally charged Thaksin and his wife with corruption, the deposed premier announced that Manchester City directors had recommended to the club's shareholders that they accept his bid of £81.6 million (Bt5.46 billion).

At first, Thaksin found some receptive ears in the UK. A survey in The Guardian newspaper showed that only 24 per cent of respondents objected to the club being sold to the tainted Thai businessman.

Bangkok, in response, threw down the gauntlet. The money to buy Manchester City was a mystery to Thailand, Finance Minister Chalongphob Sussangkarn announced.

"I am sure Thailand's Assets Examination Commission will look at the source of these funds and try to see whether they were legal funds that were taken out," he added.

Thaksin was required by law to declare all his assets, domestic and foreign when in office. Chalongphob claimed Thaksin held back on the

foreign assets.

While Thai law is not likely to hold water in Britain, Thaksin and his people are learning quickly that, like the Singaporean deal, technicalities alone are not enough. Public perception is also important.

Thaksin's bid to take over Manchester City sparked a heated debate in the House of Commons during which Labour Party MP David Taylor described the former Thai premier as "unsavoury".

Taylor reportedly told UK Sports Minister Richard Caborn that the issue of foreign takeovers in football needed urgent attention. He made a specific reference to Thaksin among "flaky foreign financiers", according to the Sportinglife.com website.

Caborn told Taylor that he wanted to prevent the Premier League from becoming "a billionaires' playground".

"We have got to make sure that the grass roots, the communities from which those clubs came, are respected," Caborn said.

In Bangkok, Thaksin's lawyer Noppadon Pattama was tight-lipped. He would not comment until Thaksin passes the Football Association's "fit and proper person test".

Manchester City is not the first English Premier League club Thaksin has tried to purchase. He also courted Liverpool and Fulham. Talks didn't last long before being aborted, leaving many critics to suggest that Thaksin was just chasing the spotlight.

But this time around, the man has got the attention he so much sought. And it is sticking to him like khao niew.

As the old saying goes, beware of what you wish for because you just might get it. The British tabloid press could be unkind if and when Thaksin's true colours come to light. More English football fans will read the Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch reports of his human rights abuses.

Thai people have seen how the quirky ambitions of this man were able to bring Thai-Singaporean relations to their knees. Let's hope that he doesn't divide British society or pit it against Thailand over his latest conquest.

Don Pathan

The Nation