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Published on February 1, 2008

It has become obvious to everyone that the Cabinet being formed by the People Power Party-led coalition under Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej is handicapped not by lack of opportunity, but a dearth of talent. Samak or his handler, deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, may have searched in vain for well-respected professionals with unblemished track records among the rank and file of the six parties that make up the coalition. Would-be political appointees outside party politics, who might otherwise be persuaded to take up key Cabinet positions - especially ones that require some technical knowledge, such as the Finance portfolio - appear reluctant to join Samak's Cabinet.

Because of Samak's controversial past and his new-found role as Thaksin's nominee, the new prime minister is not able to access the usual pool of talent made up mainly of retired technocrats, well-known academics and prominent bankers. Such people would certainly make his Cabinet more presentable.

Failure by Samak to reassure the business community and the general public of any intention to take a more principled approach in implementing some of the populist policies that the PPP inherited from Thaksin's disbanded Thai Rak Thai Party also worries many prospective appointees with professional integrity.

Most of these talents are reluctant to associate themselves with Thaksin, who is accused of a series of corruption scandals and due to face trial in the courts for some of them. They probably also wonder if it is worthwhile to be part of a coalition government that most political observers say will be short-lived.

It is no exaggeration to say the Cabinet line-up is not a pretty sight by Thailand's standard, as a middle-income developing country.

It is true that the urban middle-class and the rural masses expect different things from the government, but the level of integrity and competence of members of the new Cabinet will lag far behind that of any previous administration in recent memory.

What is the new government going to do to restore the confidence of the public and international investors? All is not lost. There are many people in this country who are prepared to give the incoming Samak administration the benefit of the doubt.

To get off to the best possible start, the new government will need the service of advisory teams, made up of second- or third-tier talents who are willing to feed Cabinet ministers with ideas, offer policy options and act as spin-doctors. This may compensate for the lack of skill on the part of some Cabinet members.

In addition, and very quickly, the Samak government must prove beyond any reasonable doubt that its main purpose is to put the country back on track to genuine democracy and to put an end to the politics of divisiveness. It must strive to restore confidence in the economy and to work to achieve national development goals based on sound governance and good economic stewardship.

To do that, it must prove that it is capable of being magnanimous in victory. Thailand has suffered enough from missed political and economic opportunities due to the abuses committed under the five and half years of Thaksin's misrule, the military coup that suspended democracy, and almost 16 months of ineffective military-appointed government.

The least we can expect from the emerging coalition government - which controls an ample majority in the House of Representatives - is for it to do everything in its power to work solely toward a normalisation of national politics and the economy. This is no time for the ruling party to indulge in vengeful actions or to settle scores with political opponents.

Most important of all is the need for the government to show a sense of fair play. Let's not forget that the mandate the PPP and its political allies won in the December 23 general election is only for honest and responsible politics.

It cannot be emphasised enough that dirty politics - characterised by disrespect for the rule of law; corruption; suppression of civil liberties; and undermining of democratic institutions - can never be justified regardless of the size or margin of the electoral victory. Unless the new government learns from the mistakes of Thaksin, Thai politics may yet fall into the same vicious circle again.  

The Nation