Pressure is steadily building on Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha from rebel MPs in the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, spearheaded by the Sam Mit faction, for a cabinet reshuffle despite the prime minister having made clear that changing the cabinet is his prerogative.
In order to effect changes in the cabinet, the rebels have to seize control of the party first. They succeeded in getting rid of the party leader, Finance Minister Uttama Savanayana, and the party secretary-general, Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong, when 18 out of 34 members of the executive board resigned en masse early this month. The next step is to elect a new party leader at a general assembly scheduled on July 3.
The rebel MPs want to replace Mr Uttama with Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwon, currently the party's chief strategist, who is already reputed to be the de facto party leader.
Mr Uttama and Mr Sontirat, as well as Higher Education, Science and Innovations Minister Suvit Maesincee and Kobsak Pootrakul, deputy secretary-general of the Prime Minister's Office -- all technocrats turned politicians -- appear to be aware of the fate awaiting them. Mr Suvit, in a recent Facebook post, borrowed a quote from ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Zhi about non-attachment.
The four men who form the economic team of Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak may fight back to save their posts, but their chances are slim because the rebels have the tacit support of Gen Prawit. That raises a question mark about his goal -- is he aiming just for the party leader role or does he have one eye on the premiership too?
When asked by a reporter last week whether he aspires to become the next prime minister, Gen Prawit exclaimed "Ooooooh" and quickly walked away.
The political undercurrent in the ruling Palang Pracharath Party is typical of the gutter politics associated with veteran and new politicians alike who only think about themselves as the first priority and lack sensitivity towards the plight of the general public who are preoccupied with the economic crisis and Covid-19 pandemic.
Why can't these politicians wait a bit longer until the risk from the deadly pathogen has fallen lower to a satisfactory level? The apparent answer lies in the big piece of cake, worth about 400 billion baht, for social and economic rehabilitation, which has been laid out in front of them but remains beyond their reach unless they have a say in the economic team.
Mr Uttama and Mr Sontirat have been accused by MPs in the ruling party of not taking care of the MPs properly -- a must for all party leaders. Both rarely attend party meetings and have only been present at one executive board meeting this year.
Taking care of MPs connotes the party leader must be aware that every one of them has invested heavily in order to get elected and expects to be rewarded afterwards be with an appointment or mandate to oversee a project.
All MPs were barred from any role in the management of the 400 billion baht loan fund, which is overseen by the National Economic and Social Development Council, with state agencies down to local administrative organisations responsible for initiating projects for consideration.
MPs may be adept at sniffing out fat budgets but they are far less proficient at actually using these resources productively in a time of crisis to help to reboot the economy and preserve and create jobs in industries stricken by business closures.
There are many loopholes in the proposed projects. Over 10,000 out of more than 30,000 projects proposed were found to be related to road construction or maintenance or digging of artesian wells which are covered by normal budgets. Several were found to be old projects which had been dusted off. Even some military units have proposed projects which are quite absurd.
The bureaucrats and the local administrators should not be entirely blamed for their lack of vision or creativity or lack of the ability to think out of the box. Although the concept of rehabilitating the shattered economy and social fabric is good, the approach is wrong. It should not be left to the bureaucrats alone, but should involve more stakeholders, such as the private sector, so that there are more practical ideas that fit in with the "new normal" situation.
We need strong leaders who can inspire and lead us through this unprecedented crisis so that we will be able to stand on our feet again. It's a pity we don't have one.
Perhaps, a more collective form of leadership from our country's experts in various fields could be an alternative instead.
Veera Prateepchaikul is former editor, Bangkok Post.