Theoretically speaking, the appointment of businessmen as members of the National Strategy Committee would be good for the country. However, the political attitudes of these committee members must also be considered, in terms of whether they believe in democracy, which is important for the future of Thailand’s political and economic reforms. It will not be in the best interests of Thai democracy if these businessmen only seek to serve their own business interests.
Currently some business groups are satisfied with the current state of “perceived political stability” under the military. However, I would argue that the state of calmness and normalcy under military suppression can not be equated to “political stability”; the two are not the same. The more we accept the military involvement, the less opportunities that are available for democracy to prosper in Thailand.
The appointments demonstrate that the military sticks to the same set of people. It is time to consider appointing new people, and new voices into the circle of this administration.
The military’s declarations that it has no intention of maintaining its power is unconvincing, because they continue to appoint military officers to the National Strategy Committee, whilst abandoning highly qualified Thai civilians. For example, the appointment of military officers as experts on environmental issues in the National Strategy Committee is unnecessary, because Thailand has a number of environmental experts outside the military circle.
If the military wants to convince the general public that they have no intention of maintaining their grip on power in Thai politics, the first thing they must do is to reduce or cease appointing military personnel to various government committees or bodies. Thus far, we have seen the appointment of military officers in every facet of government.
