MPs and military, a long but uneasy mix

But sometimes the relationship is exploited by both sides, as the military these days is much different from the military of old, a veteran politician, who was once close to and worked for an Army chief, has said.

"In the past, military men were very powerful and wielded great influence. But now they're 'wimpy' and politicians don't fear them," the politician said.

In political history, we witnessed many times how both sides used each other.

After the 1991 coup, General Suchinda Kraprayoon used politicians and the Samakeetham Party as his front to snatch the prime minister's post in 1992.

Today's Democrat-led government was allegedly stitched together with some help from the military. Certain generals were said to influence politicians to switch camps and support the Democrat Party in forming a new coalition.

Newin Chidchob leveraged his connections with certain military commanders to persuade politicians into switching camps. Certain military figures in turn planned to use Newin's new Bhum Jai Thai Party as their ladder to the top political job.

Against Thaksin Shinawatra, the powerful former premier, neither the military (the coup in 2006) nor Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva could fight alone. Politicians and the military had to join forces to go after him.

By their nature, military figures are obsessed with power. They cannot stand losing their authority when they retire. So, with every coup, there is always the perpetuation of their power. And many times they get a helping hand from politicians.

The desire to retain the power of the military in politics emerged when Thailand adopted constitutional monarchy in 1932.

Field Marshal Plaek Pibulsongkram founded the Serimanangkasila Party in 1955. It was followed by the National Socialist Party of Field Marshal Sarit Dhanarat and the Saha Prachathai Party of Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn.

In 1991, the Samakeetham Party was created for General Suchinda, who had staged a coup earlier that year.

The formation of the Bhum Jai Thai Party early this year by Newin's group is regarded as a proxy party for the military. Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan is tipped to become the party leader and next prime minister.

One thing this new generation of officers should learn from their seniors is there is no happy ending. The party they start up or their front parties have never achieved much or lasted for long in politics.

Support and charisma from military forces are not enough. Playing politics needs the support of the masses. And it's against the nature of the top brass to woo popular support from voters. If you have no support from the people, it's hard to stay in power for long.

This proves one thing - that the military has never understood what real politics is.

jintana@nationgroup.com