Thaksin not running govt: PM

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday denied that her brother, ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, remotely controlled her government by making Skype video calls to chair Cabinet meetings.

Dismissing a report published in the New York Times, Yingluck said she and her Cabinet had been running the country themselves, a fact she said had been demonstrated in her increasing leadership and the achievements of her government.

In a report published on Tuesday, Times correspondent Thomas Fuller quoted Pheu Thai officials as saying that Thaksin helped run the country without having to return to face the warrant issued for his arrest. Fuller described the practice as "rule by Skype or governance by instant messenger".

Yingluck said she has repeatedly answered this kind of question. She said she and her Cabinet have been making decisions on governance on their own.

The prime minister said the media should be fair to her and take into account results of opinion surveys that showed that the public accepted her leadership.

"The media can see that Cabinet members cannot use even mobile phones during Cabinet meetings," Yingluck said when asked to confirm whether Thaksin was Skyping Cabinet sessions.

"Please consider this fact well. [The report] was unfounded."

She said she was not discouraged to be viewed with suspicion, insisting that many people still viewed her with understanding and were fair to her.