You are to blame for your country's appalling politics

Unless the public starts to hold MPs and officials accountable, we can forget about anything other than interminable gutter politics

There seems to be a big disconnect between our elected leaders and the general public, who are often left scratching their heads, wondering what was just said. It's not so much the spin that these leaders put on their statements. Usually it's the logic of the argument itself. What the leaders want, what they say, and what is actually do-able in the foreseeable future are often completely different matters entirely.

This disconnect is not healthy and if it is left unchecked it will haunt us in the future. Thai people, in short, need to learn to engage with their elected representatives and the state apparatus that they control. We often wait until the situation becomes unbearable before we make our case, often in front of the Government House in the form of protest.

The disconnect is everywhere. Take the bid for the next World Expo, for example. The announcement for the bid made us feel good about ourselves, as it might possibly help us hold our heads up high again after years of embarrassing political turmoil that has tarnished the image of this land.

The week the government approved a Bt300-million budget to campaign for the bid, the Quality Learning Foundation reported that there are nearly 14 million disadvantaged children across the country. That's about one-fifth of the population.

Some of us are wondering if we are simply looking for a quick remedy in the form of a big international event so we don't have to face the harsh reality of our situation - like the fact that one-fifth of our people are stranded in a dark place, struggling to make ends meet on a day-to-day basis.

We, as a nation, need a reality check. We need to do more in terms of holding our elected representatives accountable for their actions. In short, people need to do more than just go to the voting booths thinking that responsibilities as a citizen end there. They don't end there. If anything, that's just the beginning of it.

One of the problems in Thai politics is that wealthy people enter the public sector not to serve but to protect their wealth and interests. And so it is explainable why they want to hang on to power for as long as possible. This is the only desire they all have in common, and it is understandable why none of them has the courage to suggest term limitations.

If there were such a limitation, people who see politics as a family business would have to resort to other means to protect their fortune and business enterprises and interests.

We don't do enough to hold our representative to their word. Instead, we just put up with their spin because we are tired of trying to engage with them. And so we allow their ludicrous comments to dominate headlines. Where are the political action groups, the political analysts and academics to counter these political parasites?

Take, for example, the report about two small parties - Ruam Chart Pattana and Puea Pandin - merging to contest the upcoming general election as a single party. The de facto leader of Ruam Chart Pattana, Suwat Liptapanlop, says the merged party represents a new alternative for voters?

What alternative? How so? Changing the name of the party with the same old faces and same selfish vested interests does not represent any change at all - unless of course, the new arrangement plans to generate something wonderful and creative for the country.

A few days ago Suwat was also reported as blaming the lack of choice in Thai politics for the unresolved political dispute. That is self-evident, given his own plans. He should understand that it's the choice itself that is the problem. They need to re-evaluate themselves to see why they are so undesirable.

Unfortunately, many people are just too stupid to realise how appalling their representatives are. Thus, they can't understand why capable people do not want to enter the same gutter arena as them. It's not a matter of being pretentious; it's about not wanting to being associated with filth.

But no matter how much the public moans and cries about the quality of our elected leaders, nothing will change if we don't change our own attitude and start holding them accountable for their actions and their promises. We call them a bunch of hypocrites but we are just as bad when we tolerate their behaviour and let their actions go unchecked. We have to ask ourselves: Did we vote for them so they can raise their hands in Parliament so their party boss can stay on as long as he can, or are they accountable to the people of the constituency they are supposed to represent? Sadly, for the time being anyway, the answer is obvious.