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What was the real purpose beyond the public statement made by Abhisit that the talks were about the proposed rewrite of the Constitution, concerning six main points that will enable MPs to gain wider access to self-serving activities and large fortunes?

It could be that Abhisit just wanted to see how many people at the table tried to avoid direct eye contact. Some who are contemplating a possible parting of the ways could have given some clues or showed some insolence.

Abhisit wants to know where he stands as well, after General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh decided to take the helm of Pheu Thai Party, accepting the assignment from fugitive Thaksin Shinawatra, who still struggles desperately to get back home and walk a free man. 

Chavalit's chortling and schmoozing cannot be underestimated this time. With him is a pack of old soldiers who will not fade away even though they are in their mid-seventies. Political ambition remains thick in their blood after Thaksin's hints from time to time that his frozen Bt76 billion could be the stake to help him to win back power.

The old soldier has held many top positions in the military and politics. The decision to join the political fray again could be inspired by his own potential legal trouble, after being targeted by the National Anti-Corruption Commission, with the prospects of an indictment and jail term.

Of course, the assignment will not be for free, or for charity. Thaksin remains an inexhaustible gold mine in the eyes of his cronies, hecklers for hire, and organisers of protest rallies. Chavalit and fellow old soldiers have visited Thaksin in Dubai to plot strategies for regaining political power through an election, if not by other means.

Abhisit has to monitor their movements with extraordinary alertness. Elements within the old-guard group also possess the potential for subversive activities as well as a penchant for violence. Being retired generals, they can assume the roles of mercenaries, taking assignments from generous paymasters.

Chavalit's smooth talking, with some financial inducement, can potentially lure away coalition partners if they are promised larger shares of the spoils to be plundered from the national treasury, including expenditure budgets for many populist projects.

Abhisit must wait and watch for the next move by the old soldiers. At the same time, he must not upset the coalition partners, though he has the trump card in the form of the power to dissolve the House and send all MPs to plead for support from the voters. Such time is not now, as the Democrats and other parties still need to build up their war chests for the next contest.

Abhisit has more time, while Thaksin is aware that his poor health will not allow him to stay put with just the vain hope that his Pheu Thai Party will win the next general election - which could take a year from now. He cannot afford to wait that long, especially when the court is close to reading a verdict on a forfeiture of his assets.

The red-shirt movement has not yielded desirable results. What's more, its leaders are still trying to convince Thaksin to spend more for their periodic protest rallies, which have become dreaded by the public, rather than being a welcome addition to the national debate.

Chavalit has become the last choice, due to some remaining clout among the generals still in active service. In the Thai military, comradeship through seniority still counts and means a lot.

This leads to the question of whether our social and other systems are rotten to the core. We have seen politicians committing serious crimes and causing severe damage to the country, as judged by court rulings. Yet, they are allowed to go scot free without a single day in jail. Nobody is responsible for the billions of baht in damages.

How can these retired military and police generals, as well as civil servants in high positions, be allowed to uphold evil over good? They have come together in a bid to help a fugitive criminal without any sense of caring for public sentiment.

Despite this obvious shamefulness, these political mercenaries talk about their task as if it were a holy mission. Our corrupt bureaucratic system has groomed them to become even more sinister now that they are no longer paid monthly salaries, while their pensions are negligible, not on par with a comfortable lifestyle provided by their wealth.

This means the country will remain locked in gutter politics. Abhisit's idealism and wish to bring about reform could be a lost cause. He is a minority even within his Democrat Party. How can he convince through deed and word those undesirables to change their colours and to lay a foundation for sound politics?