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Before former prime minister Samak Sundaravej was appointed leader of the People Power Party, Chavalit was Thaksin's choice for the post. Thaksin thought Chavalit would be a good nominee to run the party and win last December's election. Thaksin had Chalerm Yoobamrung approach Chavalit many times, but Chavalit being Chavalit, he neither accepted nor refused the offer. With the clock ticking down to the election, Thaksin decided to give the post to Samak.

But Thaksin was not finished yet. When he returned to Thailand in February, he reportedly met with Chavalit several times. Thaksin was also in attendance at Chavalit's house to congratulate the general on his 76th birthday in May. There were reports that Thaksin wanted to replace Samak with Chavalit but that doing so would have been unconstitutional because Chavalit was not elected. Thaksin wanted Chavalit to keep People Power Party MPs in order as they were split into many factions.

When it came time to devise the latest Cabinet line-up, Chalerm was again assigned the task of approaching Chavalit and asking him to join Somchai Wongsawat's Cabinet as a deputy prime minister.

Chavalit, dubbed a "master strategist", was given three missions to complete when he left London.

The first mission would be to break the deadlock between the government and the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD). Chavalit has a good relationship with leaders of the PAD, especially Chamlong Srimuang and Sondhi Limthongkul. Both Chamlong and Chavalit were allies in the campaign to oust former prime minister Suchinda Kraprayoon in May 1992.

Chavalit also voiced support for the PAD's "new politics", although he thinks a 50/50 split among elected and appointed officials would be a better composition.

Chavalit's second mission was to resolve the dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over the Preah Vihear Temple.

With his long and close relationship with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Cambodian defence minister Tia Banh, Chavalit was expected to be the one to ease the tensions. Moreover, the new deputy prime minister is expected to ease unrest in the South by setting up a stage where dialogue can take place between the government and the insurgents.

The last item on Chavalit's agenda is very significant. The veteran politician was expected to be the new leader of the Puea Thai Party, a party that would substitute for the People Power Party if the latter was disbanded. While Thaksin wanted to get rid of Newin Chidchob' s group, the London Man needed someone to replace him, and he thought Chavalit was just the man for the job. Having believed in Chavalit's power and political clout in the Northeast, Thaksin hoped Chavalit could lead the Puea Thai to a parliamentary majority.

Out of these missions, one positive development relates to easing the tensions between the government and the PAD, as last week Chamlong said he welcomed talks with Chavalit.