ANCHALEE KONGRUT

Still have no idea whom to vote for? Don't know if you want a candidate with heaps of projects, a decent and humble guy, or a city "angel" who promises to turn the city into a heavenly capital?
You are not alone. In fact, you are in the majority.

Most Bangkokians face a citizen's duty to vote on Sunday with little idea about the duty and role of governor, even though the city has elected one since 1985. (For the 12 years before that, they were appointed.)

Talord Charoonrat, deputy city clerk overseeing adminstration work, said people still mixed up the governor's duties with those of MPs. Some look at the govenor as a service provider and this is probably the reason they tend to pick a person promising projects.

In reality, the Bangkok governor will spend most of the four-year term managing the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, a leviathan bureaucracy with 90,000 officials and an annual budget of close to 40 billion baht and rising.

Projects that come up during the election campaign simply reflect the candidates' vision. The governor is obliged to follow the BMA's seventh development master plan, and projects under the plan's framework.

The new governor can propose projects, but there is no guarantee such proposals, called "special projects," will advance past the talking stage. Previous governors including Samak Sundaravej and Bhichit Rattakul left office without completing their initiatives. Consider Mr Samak's underground parking at Sanam Luang and Mr Bhichit's proposals for an art museum and tram service.

Most such projects are victims of a lack of funding.

"Still, talent and management skills would be good assets for the governor," said Mr Talord.
The primary job of the new governor will be to make Bangkok a more liveable city, by trying to provide it with more public parks, better waste management, and generally uplifting the quality of people's lives.

"It is necessary voters have a more realistic picture about the governor," he said. "The new governor will have to act as a local administrator, in accordance with the 1985 Bangkok Administration Act."