Christmas seems to have come early in the form of wishful thinking wrapped up as the new government's policies, which were submitted to the parliament for debate on Thursday.
Like any season's greetings, the 66-page policy manifesto reads beautifully. It is filled with upbeat, feel-good terms such as "innovation", "equality", "respect for the community" and "care for the environment".
The statement said the government will take care of each and every citizen. It will resolve bread-and-butter problems while generating enough income for everyone so that there will be no more inequality.
Under the second coming of PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, Thais will become capable intellectually, morally and ethically, with the potential to enjoy life in the 21st century.
But life is never as beautiful as wishes, and this government's policy manifesto is no Christmas card.
Putting a series of nice-sounding words together does not make for a coherent statement. There is no clear explanation of how the government's goals relate to each other. There is not even a central idea. How could one describe the policy statement in a few words? Is it a security-heavy agenda? Not really. Is it a plan for an economic fix? That is not clear either.
In the preamble, the PM went to great lengths to justify his government's attempt to lessen income equality but his economic policy is geared towards megaprojects like the Eastern Economic Corridor and Special Economic Zone. Community-based enterprises were also mentioned but there is no clear explanation how they have anything to do with each other or how they will contribute to a reduction in inequality.
If this policy statement were a proposal to receive a grant, its lack of focus would have set it back considerably.
A proposal that seeks to do everything is one that usually ends up addressing nothing. This policy statement is asking for a three-trillion-baht national budget. It should at least be coherent.
The lack of a central idea, and by extension strategic direction, does not only cause the policy statement to appear weak and scattered but will likely result in its suffering from an implementation deficit.
In laying the case for his main and urgent policies, the PM mentioned how Thailand is changing quickly and how the country will have to cope with new and complex challenges.
The PM emphasised how his administration has to cope with uncertainties and risks, domestically and internationally. The country is in a transition and problems have evolved from being one-dimensional, like poverty, to more complex concerns, like inequalities not just in wealth but in education and opportunity.
The same is true with security threats, which are no longer limited to armed insurgency as in the past but shapeless, borderless evils like international terrorism, narcotic drugs, disease outbreaks and cyber warfare.
The PM's portrayal of the challenges awaiting his administration is not off the point. When it comes to addressing them, however, the proposal falls apart.
Considering the fluid situation the PM described, with problems being complex, multi-levelled and multidimensional, the natural direction the government should take is diversification.
Resilience should be the key to coping with uncertainties and unknown risks. That should translate into a need for decentralisation to be made the central plank of the government's policy platform. To promote start-ups, there is no point building a billion-baht centre in Bangkok. It is better to spread the budget and build a hundred or so hubs for youths in provinces to hone their digital and entrepreneurial skills.
The same is true with security threats, inequality and human resources development. It is no longer logical for the government to be big and omnipresent, as seems to be the case in this policy statement.
As things become more complex, a single, monolithic entity will be ill-equipped to cope. A new form of government must be fostered. It should have a clear task and accountability yet also remain nimble enough to cope with the fast-changing environment.
It's true that the government still has a major role to play when it comes to infrastructure and industrial development as well as in welfare and public health schemes. Still, room must be made for a government of the future that is not as reductionistic as it has been.
It's possible that the policy statement came out as a mixed bag of PR-friendly slogans because the government itself is an eclectic combination of coalition parties. This jumble does not look promising as a blueprint for the country's near future, however. It is more like the government is wishing the country all the best, then signing off.
Atiya Achakulwisut is a columnist, Bangkok Post.