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Published on February 6, 2008

First-time MPs were certainly overwhelmed when they claimed election victories.

They were equally thrilled when they were given new responsibilities in Parliament.

They say it is only proper that they are enthusiastic about working for their electorates and country.

Wisaradee Techatheerawat, a 26-year-old new MP for Chiang Rai, said she was happy she won her constituency. It was a childhood dream come true.

Politics seems to run in her family. Her father Wisarn is a former Chiang Rai MP and was one of the 111 former Thai Rak Thai executives who had been banned from politics.

However, she said her victory came from her devotion to her electorate, not because of her father's record.

She had not expected to win because it was the first time she had run in a general election.

She said her first job would be to push for populist policies that were introduced by the now-disbanded Thai Rak Thai. They include drug suppression programmes and measures to boost the economy. Wisaradee's interest in politics was inspired by her father.

When she was told of her victory, her father said: "Now you are a politician, every time you do something, think about the public and not just yourself."

Former actor Danuporn Punnakanta, a People Power Party MP for Bangkok, said he was happy to win because he wanted to work for his electorate.

He plans to stick to his promise to work transparently. His immediate plan is to push for a law to punish wayward monks, especially if they break their vow of celibacy. He finds this most shameful because the country has a Buddhist culture.

Danuporn, 36, said he decided to leave show business for politics in 2003 but lost the vote during his first attempt. He thinks voters were not confident about him then.

The young politician believes he's suited for this job, as he used to be in the spotlight as an actor. The only difference now was he had to take care of people.

This is not the only change in his life. Danuporn plans to marry his long-time girlfriend, actress Suwanan Khongying, some time this year.

Democrat MP Narthaya Benjasiriwan, a 46-year-old former actress, said the first thing she would do was try to address the issue of unemployment.

She would encourage the formation of housewife groups to make local products and push these groups to improve the quality of their products using certification by the Food and Drug Administration.

These ideas were expected to provide stable occupations for poor communities.

She also wants to promote education for youths, set up education centres in communities and strengthen the family unit by promoting moral values.

Rachada Dhnadirek, a first-time Democrat MP for Bangkok, said she would focus on education.

What she can do immediately is to teach youths about political participation. She also has a project for schoolgirls during their summer vacation.

While boys are ordained as novice monks during this time, girls do not have a comparable activity. Her project, called Buddha Putri (Daughters of Lord Buddha), would teach them about dharma.

It would be organised at Songtham Kalayani Temple in Nakhon Pathom province, where the abbot is a bhikkhuni (female monk), said Rachada, 32.

When she was a lecturer at Mahidol University, Rachada was one of 50 academics there who signed an open letter in February 2006, asking Thaksin Shinawatra to step down as prime minister.

She said she was bored with old-style politics and decided to run in the hope of improving the political scene.

She said her life had changed since winning. As a lecturer of sociology and humanities, she worked mostly in lecture halls. As an MP, she was required to interact with many people. She expects her academic experience to help her with her new duties.

Autthawith Suwannapakdee, another first-time Democrat MP, said as his party formed the opposition, he would join colleagues to perform legislative tasks such as proposing new laws.

A former lecturer of finance-related laws, he wants to join a House committee on finance.

Autthawith, 29, said he would set up his own club and organise "anti-drug" sports events for youths. He would also focus on chronic flooding problems at his constituency in Lak Si.

Budsarakham Sinlapalavan

The Nation