Fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was trying to hoodwink the public by comparing Thai politics and the sportsmanship of English football, Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Wednesday.
Thaksin, left, says Thai politicians should have sportsmanship like English football fans, but Democrat's Abhisit Vejjajiva says Thaksin should practice what he preaches. (File photos)
Thaksin, former owner of Manchester City football club, on Tuesday wrote on his Facebook page that there is hometown rivalry between Man United and Man City fans in Manchester, but they do not publicly show dissent when either team wins the Premier League title each year.
"The fans have decency and sportsmanship because they do not doubt the match results due to the transparency of tournament staff and organisers," the message says.
The ousted premier said Thailand on the contrary is full of lies, ambiguous laws that have to be constantly interpreted and unjust verdicts based on personal emotions.
Politicians who cannot win under the rule of law have been exploiting these social weaknesses, causing division in the country to widen, he posted.
"Respect the rules and have good sportsmanship, and Thailand will prosper," Thaksin said.
Mr Abhisit said he was surprised that Thaksin made a comment about the aspects of being a good sport.
"When the Democrat Party had more votes in the parliament, the man created unrest, causing casualties and setting the city on fire, instead of accepting the result," said the opposition leader.
When Man United lost, fans did not threaten the referees and chase after the opposing team's fans and beat them up, he added.
"I agree with Thaksin's comment that following the rules will make Thailand better. Therefore, I would like to ask him and the red shirts to respect the law, because we've already done our part."