Bangkok governor gets few points for performance

Unfortunately, Sukhumbhand has done little to boast about.

When Bangkok University conducted a survey on his 150th day in office, some respondents did not even know who Sukhumbhand was, while some believed Apirak Kosayodhin was still governing the capital.

Those who did know about Sukhumbhand gave him just 4.8 points out of 10 for his performance.

Sukhumbhand, a longtime Democrat, ran for the gubernatorial post after his party mate Apirak was forced to quit. Elected twice by a landslide, Apirak had to quit the city's top post on November 20 because the National AntiCorruption Commission (NACC) concluded that he should also be held responsible for the firevehicle scandal.

In his first term as Bangkok governor, Apirak had to make a decision on the procurement of Bt6.8 billion worth of fire trucks and equipment from the Austrian firm SteyrDaimlerPuch. Apirak's successor, Samak Sundaravej, had signed the purchase contract while serving as caretaker.

The deal was based on a memorandum of understanding signed by the Austrian ambassador to Bangkok and theninterior minister Bhokin Bhalakula.

After initial reluctance, Apirak finally decided to open a letter of credit for the deal partly because Bhokin had insisted he do so. However, this letter of credit ended up haunting him because it required the BMA to pay the supplier.

Since several probes showed that the purchase was mired in corruption, the fire trucks sent in by the SteyrDaimlerPuch could not be accepted. As a result, they are sitting inside a terminal gathering dust.

Meanwhile, under the letter of credit, the BMA has already had to pay several billions of baht to the supplier.

When Sukhumbhand took over, he was faced with the problem of sorting out the deal. Next month, the BMA is scheduled to hand over more than Bt800 million to the supplier in its sixth instalment.

The deal covers nine instalments, with two being paid every year.

If Sukhumbhand does nothing now, he will attract more criticism for his inefficiency because the firetruck scandal was one of the first things he vowed to tackle upon taking office.

Early in February, Sukhumbhand urged the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to have the Civil Court nullify the purchase contract or at least issue an injunction to stop the next instalment from being paid.

"I feel ethically obliged to take action and will solely take responsibility for my actions," Sukhumbhand had announced back then.

However, all parties involved are worried that anybody dealing with the contract may end up being sued by the Austrian supplier. BMA ended up having to pay its fifth instalment in February because OAG did not agree with Sukhumbhand's idea, pointing out that the BMA turn to an arbitration committee to resolve disputes over the contract.

It is quite a surprise that legal experts at the NACC and the OAG do not see eye to eye in this matter. According to the NACC, the contract can be annulled because the agreement signed by Bhokin did not constitute a governmenttogovernment agreement. Apparently, only the prime minister or the foreign minister can enter into deals such as this.

Seeing that NACC and OAG have different opinions, Sukhumbhand asked the incumbent Interior Minister Chaovarat Chanweerakul to waive duties on the fire vehicles for BMA in June.

Sukhumbhand is also reportedly planning to fly to the United States to talk to SteyrDaimlerPuch's parent company. The talks will likely be about whether BMA can use the fire trucks without relinquishing the right to seek to annul the contract.

The outcome of this discussion will be a crucial factor for Sukhumbhand's future though.

If things go well, Sukhumbhand, and may be even Apirak, might be able to end the firetruck dilemma. However, if things don't go well, Sukhumbhand may end up being in serious trouble.