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Surayud was speaking to more than 200 business people and high level and high government officials at the annual meeting of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC).

He said that the populist policy is not a terrible policy to harm the country as someone might fear. However, the politician, who employed such a policy, must have high efficiency administration skills based on high moral.

"The new government must know how to administrate rather than spend large sum of money to populations in order to gain its popularity," said Surayud.

He said that his government also use the populist policy such as village fund and provide free of charge healthcare service for people, while the ousted government has collected Bt30 per person, he said. To use the policy, he suggested the new government to consider maximum benefit of people rather than concern on their voices.

He also raised his concerned to the coming government to closely monitor of oil price, baht's value, and rapid change of global economy.

Surayud has not concerned much to the skyrocketing oil price. But he called on the new government to seek for long term measure to solve the problem, as the oil price would not be average only $50 per barrel any longer, but it would surge to US$80 per barrel in average.

Moreover, he asked for the next government to further employ of sufficiency economy philosophy for its administration as it is the best way to promote sustainable growth.

As the new government will administrate under the new Constitution Act 2008, the premier remarked that the new government will have flexibility to amend the act if it found any mistake occurred.

Surayud also promised to continue all of the TCC's proposals to stimulate the country's growth and passed the responsible to the National Economic and Social Development Board for passing to the new government.

In order to promote sustainable development, Surayud also said that reform the education system, from major concentrating on certification to semivocational system.

In primary, students who spend four years in campus, should spend only three years, and utilise another one year for job internship.

The new system will help students to have both knowledge from books and skilled to work in real world, he said, adding that this will also response to demand of business sectors for high skilled labours.

Commerce Minister Krirkkrai Jirapaet called on the new government to not distort the agricultural system by returning to set high price of agricultural pledging.

He said the new government should attempt to cancel the price guarantee programme as this government attempted to do as it is the answer for sustainable development.

In addition, Surayud called on business people and all Thai populations to solve the deepSouth conflict, focusing on encouraging education opportunity as well as employment.

Problems occurred because people lacked of well educated, as well as a responsible for the problem, he said.

"It is not only the security problem, but also it is the social problem, which need both government and private sectors to cooperate handle for its," said Surayud.

The best solution is to encourage people to have more education as it key to increase understanding of people differences, including background, ethic, and religious. Also, he called on private companies to give equal opportunity for employment people from the deepSouth as it will alleviate

I strongly believed that if everybody paid their attention to education development, the problem must be resolved and any misunderstanding will be eliminated, he said.

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation