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One urgent necessity is for him to clear up the legal ambiguity over whether the government can borrow Bt400 billion for the economy under a royal decree. The bill for the economic plan was withdrawn from the House for interpretation by the Constitution Court. This will take a while.

If the court rules that the government does not have the authority, it will be another slap in the face and a major setback for the economic rescue scheme, which is anxiously being sought by government agencies and the private sector. The huge sum would serve as a big shot in the arm.

The House remains in a mess. The opposition finds it extremely pleasurable to block whatever moves the government comes up with. It was set to vote against the bill for the Bt400 million stimulus plan. The government whip sensed that there could be big trouble and thus chose to delay it.

Of course, the opposition will continue to harangue Abhisit and his team whenever the House is in session. The tactic of refusing to sign in to the House to make a quorum has become increasingly frustrating. And if they have signed in, they just walk out whenever a quorum is needed. That's why there were frequent quorum checks last week until tempers flared, resulting in an exchange of barbs and accusing fingers.

Abhisit will need patience more than charm and eloquence in articulating his requests to the House to approve bills and proposals. He cannot expect any cooperation and understanding whatsoever from the opposition, which continues to be hostile. Good sense and sanity are no longer the criteria for the national agenda.

The opposition is intent on pressing forward with unreasonable demands such as a constitutional amendment and amnesty for all politicians barred from politics by the Constitution Court. Oh yes, it wants Thaksin Shinawatra to be absolved of all wrongdoing and be able to return home as a free man with his frozen assets returned to him.

So there is no middle ground for the government and the opposition. The panels on reconciliation and constitutional amendment were so fractious and self-serving that there was virtually no hope for agreement, which could have led to resolutions and actions beneficial to the public. Vested interests still prevail.

Outside the House, Abhisit continues to find the red-shirt movement like a monkey on his back, a throbbing pain in the neck, so to speak. Yesterday a few hundred red-shirted hecklers staged a noisy protest in front of the House, demanding constitutional amendment on their terms. Some of them were close to exchanging blows with Buddhist monks who were there to voice demands as well.

The power of the red-shirt movement has been weakened due to a lack of a broad-based public acceptance following the violence instigated by its ringleaders during Songkran. Yet, there remain some elements geared to causing more trouble either through street protests or a clandestine movement that could include terror campaigns.

More problems will be caused by the opposition, and more trouble from the red shirts is something that Abhisit will have to bear with extreme tolerance. The only means to counter and overcome this adversity is for him and the Cabinet to bring about an economic turnaround with tangible results seen by the public - even more so in the eyes of rural folk.

That goal remains elusive. The government does not have a strong hand in managing economic affairs. Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij still performs like a fumbling adolescent with no clear direction and no view of the big picture. So far he has been obsessed with the stock market, relying on share price movements to gauge the health of the economy. He urgently needs a team of economic advisers instead of relying on the CEOs of some finance firms, or an ex-governor of the central bank who is washed up and worn out due to an inability to grasp the present reality.

Fear of loss of face, as well as misguided confidence, can result in disaster, if not a large-scale calamity. There is a strong chance of the country overcoming its problems if an able hand takes charge of the economic rescue plan. A lot of people in the private sector still remain unconvinced that the ongoing measures will serve as the right panacea.

Maybe it's time for self-evaluation by all, with Abhisit calling a spade a spade and not fearing that he will ruffle some fine feathers or get into a turf war. He is the boss, and must call the shots. Failing to do so due to a soft heart, or love or friendship, will lead to a deepening of the crisis.

Yes, Abhisit is nice. But now is not the time for him to be Mr Nice Guy.