It's easy to text your way to trouble. Ask Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. He might learn the hard way - yet again today - that no matter what you have done in the past, it will always come back to haunt you.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) is set to announce its decision today on what looked like a completely harmless SMS that Abhisit sent out to 17 million Thais shortly after he became PM in late 2008. That SMS, in which he essentially declared himself Thailand's new prime minister who was ready to communicate with all citizens to find a way out for the country, may have violated a few laws, according to critics.
Abhisit, whose party is bracing for a possible dissolution ruling by the Constitution Court, has good old Ruengkrai Leekitwattana to thank for this new potential time bomb. The senator, along with some Pheu Thai MPs, have asked the NACC to see if those SMS were a "gift" given to Abhisit by telecom operators, in which case the prime minister will have violated the anti-corruption law prohibiting officials from accepting any present worth more than Bt3,000.
If the NACC decides that the complaint does have ground, then it will have to work with the public prosecutors to file a case against Abhisit and Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij with the Supreme Court's section for political office holders. If things go that far, Abhisit will have to be suspended from duty.
The key point here, of course, is whether the telecom operators were giving Abhisit a "gift" worth far more than Bt3,000, or whether he and the companies were only working together to advance a government campaign for public interest.
This question already surfaced at a no-confidence debate not long after Abhisit became prime minister, but at that time the attention it received was next to nothing.
The Pheu Thai Party insisted that this was not just the case of receiving a very expensive gift, but also an abuse of power. Three telecom companies, if they had indeed been promised tax waivers as alleged, could have been "bribed" to serve Abhisit's self interests. Or they could have been "forced" to help the new prime minister promote himself. Either way, the government was "wrong" in getting them involved.
Then there was the issue of invasion of privacy. The blanket SMS "bombardment" may have violated the rights of millions of Thais. Yet, considering the "Bid today for the cheapest laptop" or "Download the coolest ringtone" messages people receive every hour, this charge seems to hold the least water.
Abhisit will use the same defence he used at the censure. Thailand was deeply divided when he became prime minister, so he only wanted to open a new channel of communications to engage the public in a quest for reconciliation. The telecom operators took part in the campaign voluntarily and were neither bribed nor forced to cooperate.
Did the SMS "benefit" Abhisit? Yes, as it helped present a good image for a new prime minister.
Was it intended for public interest? Again, there seems to be strong argument for a "Yes". And also, political use of the short messaging service was nothing new when Abhisit came to power. The point of contention here is that the three telecom operators provided the service for free.
Reports yesterday indicated that Abhisit was likely to be let off the hook over this one. Yet there is no foolproof guarantee of political survival nowadays. The party dissolution case the Democrats are facing has been built around issues that Thai politicians would not have cared less for about a decade ago, so last night must have be another sleepless night for the prime minister.