November 29, 2005 - What ‘really’ happened and is happening between Thaksin Shinawatra and Sondhi Limthongkul? It’s a question overshadowed by the issue of media freedom and growing public disenchantment with a once-popular leader.

Is there more to the potentially explosive conflict between them than meets the eye? This is the first in a series of a comprehensive look into an intriguing showdown.

It’s not all about media freedom and democracy.

The conflict between Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and media owner Sondhi Limthongkul is driven mainly by business interest as the latter lost his cash cow in the government’s corral before he started firing a series of salvos at his former friend.

The pair has had a long love-hate relationship. They are former business partners in telecoms firm International Engineering Company who shared everything. A deep rift led to deadly rivalry in telecommunications sector when Thaksin moved away to start out on his own.

Thaksin had mobile phones and so did Sondhi; when Thaksin launched a satellite, Sondhi wanted to as well.

That bout in the foe-cum-friend story ended with Sondhi knocking himself out.

Nobody imagined that when Thaksin began his first term as prime minister five years ago, Sondhi would be foremost among his flatterers. He called for people to give the new prime minister a chance to run the country after the Democrat Party, in his view, took foreigners’ orders to destroy Thai-owned business, including his own Manager Media Group. Sondhi himself had ended up with huge debts after the 1997 economic crisis.

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Sondhi got quickly emerged from debt thanks to a creditor who forced him to declare bankruptcy. This meant that the Bt1.5 billion debt could be claimed from whatever was in his personal account for a span three years, rather than having to repay the debt over 15 or 20 years as earlier scheduled.

The reborn Sondhi quickly got stronger with support from major players in Thaksin’s government, namely chief adviser Pansak Vinyaratn, Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak and Finance Minister Thanong Bidaya, as well as then Krung Thai Bank chief Viroj Nualkhair.

Sondhi began to build his media empire again using his son Jitranart Limthongkul as a front to set up the company Thaiday to run the Manager website, radio, television and an English language newspaper. The rehabilitated Manager Media Group meanwhile served as a good back office.

Business was shaping up well in the beginning. Sondhi managed to tap a frequency of Public Relations Department to run programmes on the Channel 11 News One channel. He got airtime from Mass Communication Organisation of Thailand (MCOT) to broadcast radio programmes and his TV talk show “Muang Thai Rai Sabda”. Many professional journalists, including his talk show co-host Sarocha Pornudomsak, flocked to Pra Arthit Road to help Sondhi build a new media empire for good pay.

The content of all his media outlets, notably the flagship Phujadkarn newspaper, favoured the Thaksin administration. Sondhi acted as the government’s public defender, justifying all Thaksin’s policies including the populist ones.

The honeymoon quickly ended as a faction in the ruling Thai Rak Thai Party questioned Sondhi presence in state-run media and forced him out. Airtime from MCOT was running out and the channel 11 News One slot was ruled irregular.

Sondhi’s fondness for the government was wearing thin and finally torn when his close associate Viroj, former chief of Pratara Finance who fed Sondhi’s business before 1997 crisis, failed to get a second term as president of KTB. Sondhi has been sniping at Thaksin ever since.

Sondhi has got intelligent advisers. He has never told the public that business interest was the driving force in his movement against Thaksin. In stead, he used royalist ideology as a moral high ground from which to accuse Thaksin of lese majeste.

Sondhi also latched on to Thai Rak Thai member Pramuan Ruchanaseeree’s disaffection with the party after the latter wrote a book championing royal power and calling for a second political reform and a new constitution.

The ultimate goal of this political movement is to overthrow Thaksin administration, as well as its allies in parliament and independent bodies. Legal expert Amorn Chantrasomboon was brought in to help Sondhi build a political discourse for the movement and the pro-democracy Thammasat University offered forum for them to run the game.

Despite being no good for the nation as a whole, Sondhi’s royalist rhetoric is actually working, as more and more people are showing up at his weekly meetings in Lumpini Park wearing yellow T-shirts with the slogan “We will fight for the King”.

But now that the mass movement has gained momentum, Sondhi will find it is a tiger that he cannot get off so easily. He needs to carry on until either the end of Thaksin’s regime or the collapse of his media empire. The game will not be over quickly as his opponent has everything, including power and money.

Disclosures about Thaksin’s abuse of power and conflicts of interest in the government gained credibility and political support for Sondhi, who also has the backup of support from Luangta Mahabua, a prominent Buddhist monk from Udon Thani.

But financial support might be a troublesome for Sondhi as all media outlets he employed to fight Thaksin ranking from old forms newspaper to new form such as internet and satellite TV is money consuming choice. If the December 9 gathering does not deliver a knockout punch, Sondhi will need a full credit pipeline to enable him to stay in the game.

Political Desk
The Nation