Pacing tiger of Chiang Mai zoo (Gallery)

Pacing tiger of Chiang Mai zoo (Gallery)

Night safari boss Sarawut Srisakuna has proven to be a revelation

SOCIAL & LIFESTYLE

When Sarawut Srisakuna signed on to direct the Chiang Mai Night Safari almost four years ago, he was well aware of the uphill task before him - turning around a zoo that was believed to be on borrowed time.

He was named chief executive officer of the safari at a time when it was losing its precious animals through death from neglect and illness. Visitors had also dropped away.

Hounded by critics and animal rights advocates over the poor condition of the animals, Mr Sarawut knew there would be no honeymoon period for him. He had to go all-out to reverse the zoo's decline.

He won the trust of the late Maj Gen Sanan Kachornprasart, a respected political figure at the time, to straighten out the problems at the zoo in six months.

The zoo was in such bad shape, physically and financially, that the government of the day under Abhisit Vejjajiva had mulled closing it down.

The night zoo came under heavy fire from activists as many animals were raised in environments that were totally alien to those which they were used to.

"When I started my work here on May 31, 2010, the number of zoo visitors was low due to rallies by red-shirt demonstrators that were going on," he said.

At the time, the night zoo attracted only 10,000 visitors, a sharp drop from 100,000 visitors a day originally.

"The zoo was not bringing in many tourists, particularly foreign ones," said Mr Sarawut.

If he could not clean up the mess at the zoo within the six-month deadline, it would be shut down for good. Maj Gen Sanan had asked the government to give him time to prove his worth.

In the meantime, animals were dying almost every day. The negative publicity was running the zoo's reputation into the ground.

With his back to the wall and racing against time, Mr Sarawut set out to find the root cause of the multiplying problems which were forcing some executives, who had only served in their posts for a few months, to leave the organisation. A management position at the zoo was quite tough, particularly for those with no experience in zoo management.

Mr Sarawut figured he could drive marketing promotions to ratchet up sales to improve the zoo's balance sheet.

He met local communities, tambon administration organisations, provincial administration organisations and tourism-related agencies and told them why the zoo was not functioning so well.

In the meantime, the zoo offered discounted tickets and promotional packages for tour groups to win back the tourists.

He looked into the internal problems, and particularly why animals were dying. He was baffled to discover a chain reaction that threatened the lifeline of the organisation.

Staff felt demoralised by the unsatisfactory welfare benefits, which hurt their productivity. Some staff were not working to their full capacity and neglected to look after the animals.

Mr Sarawut loaned part of his salary, interest free, to several staff in financial trouble.

"Some staffers borrowed money from predatory lenders who charged a monthly interest rate of 20 percent," he said.

Soon, visitors returned and the internal flaws in the employment system were fixed. The 1,800 or so animals were being properly fed and taken care of.

Mr Sarawut's big break came last year when the government established the Pinkanakorn Development Agency (PDA) and he was made its first acting director.

The PDA is supervised by caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Plodprasop Suraswadi.

The agency is a public organisation set up by the cabinet last year to promote the tourism industry in the North. It currently oversees Chiang Mai Night Safari, the Royal Park Rajapruek and the 3.6-billion-baht Chiang Mai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Mr Sarawut also concurrently heads the night safari.

Mr Sarawut , 45, known to friends as "Dr Mink", came from a wealthy bureaucrat family. Critics thought his comfortable family life made him the wrong fit for the tough job at the night safari.

The Bangkok-born Mr Sarawut graduated with a bachelor's degree in political science from Ramkhamhaeng University and later studied overseas for his master's degree. He returned home and graduated with a PhD from Naresuan University.

Mr Sarawut, who is married to Jitsurang and has a son, took up the civil service job and rose through the ranks, mostly working in the field of wastewater and environment management.

He previously worked as director-general of the Wastewater Management Authority, a position he held from 2004-2009.

Mr Sarawut had to deal with opponents of major environment-related projects such as the wastewater treatment facilities on Phi Phi island in Krabi, Patong beach in Phuket, and at Ban Phru Tieo and Ban Nam Khem villages in Phangnga.

All projects were implemented after the deadly tsunami that struck the Andaman coastal provinces.

He conducted a study on the participation of people in mega-projects that affect the environment for his PhD thesis. He chose the controversial Klong Dan wastewater treatment plant construction as a case study.

The Phi Phi wastewater treatment project drew fierce resistance from local residents. The fallout turned nasty after angry protesters were accused of assaulting a high-ranking police officer and called for the Krabi provincial governor, who was on a visit, to leave the island.

As supervisor of the water treatment facility, his foremost task was to talk with leading protesters and try to educate them about the project.

Protest leaders were taken on a tour of successful waste treatment projects in other areas. He stressed that locals be allowed a say in the decision-making part of the projects and this led to cooperation from residents.

Now at the helm of the night safari, Mr Sarawut said he had to learn from scratch the art and science of zoo management.

It has now bounced back from the red. The number of zoo visitors has tripled since he first took up his role.

The zoo began to receive less of a state subsidy after it started to turn a profit. Mr Sarawut has set his sights on several projects, including a cable car linking tourist spots in the compound of the Pinkanakorn Development Agency with the popular Doi Suthep and Doi Pui national parks.

However, the cable car project has run into protests from environmental groups and Mr Sarawut sees a major hurdle ahead.

He admits it will be extremely difficult to move ahead with the cable car project as opponents had tried to politicise the issue.

He said the PDA must be a wholly commercial enterprise to survive. Bureaucracy has no place in its operation.

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