Thaksin dons the cone of silence
 The Nation
November 23, 2005 - With scandals all around, the PM adopts a self-imposed gag order to save himself from further grief
Faced with the “Sondhi phenomenon”, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has decided to change tactics and keep silent.
Thai Rak Thai supporters may have been relieved after Thaksin announced on Sunday he would stop talking to the media, including a suspension of his weekly press meets until next year.
“Mercury is aligned directly with my star. Mercury is no good. Please don’t talk right now. You [the media] will have to wait until next year to talk [with me] again,” he said. The PM insisted he would not comment on anything till the planets were back in a favourable alignment.
This is not the first time Thaksin has chosen to gag himself to counter negative media reports about him and his government. He has done this many times over his five years in power. But this time his move blocks unrestricted questions from the media.
Three months of press briefings haven’t helped to improve his image. In fact, it has only made things worse for the premier, especially the first meeting, where he joked with members of the media by raising a “cross” sign for questions he deemed “unconstructive” and a “circle” sign for “constructive” queries.
As prime minister, he cannot shut the door on the media. Many actions have been taken that have questionable motives.
But simply shutting up is also risky. It might lead people to think many of the criticisms or scandals reported in the media are true.
The prime minister will also be seen as opposing press freedom. Not only has he sued media organisations and asked a court to order a gag, he has also barred the media from asking him questions.
His only communication with the people now is his Saturday radio programme. But it is one-way dialogue. Only the PM and his government benefit from that. No controversial questions can be asked under such a situation.
He can say anything he wants people to hear and refuse to address the issues people should know about. Thaksin wants people to be passive, and to set the agenda – a key duty of the media.
In the near future, the PM’s radio programmes will only bring promises of more “We care” or “Mega” projects.
It is no secret that Thaksin likes to be the only one to speak. He doesn’t like to answer questions, whether tfrom the media or from the opposition in parliamentary sessions, because he cannot bear criticism.
However, Thaksin seems to have found the right position. Gagging himself seems to be the best solution, allowing him to survive “hot” political issues – an approach many of his colleagues have warned him to take.
Thaksin’s weakest points are his big mouth and his shoot-from-the-hip style of responding to critical issues. His words have always heated up the political atmosphere.
In his heyday, shortly after he first took over the premiership, Thaksin’s words caught everybody’s attention. Now, whatever he says, many people simply don’t believe it – or choose not to.
Thaksin hopes that eventually people might feel sympathy for him and forget all the criticisms if he simply stays silent.
And that’s the time he’ll begin to regain his declining popularity.
Jintana Panyaarvudh
The Nation
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