THAILAND: Dose of fantasy ahead of PM's reality show

State officials beautify Roi Et Province for reality-tv broadcast despite Prime Minister's request to live in the conditions of the local people

Bangkok Post
Friday, December 13, 2006

By Preeyanat Phanayanggoor

Roi Et --- For residents of Roi Et's At Samat district the past month has been busy, with state officials descending on their district to beautify it ahead of the prime minister's visit.

Long-standing problems such as damaged roads, and power and water shortages have been fixed, all to welcome Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra who will sleep there next week.

Mr Thaksin will chair a five-day workshop on solving poverty. It will be broadcast live, in the style of a reality TV show.

Mr Thaksin told officials that he did not want the area to be made over, so he could experience the genuine living conditions of local people.

But preparations can be seen along the routes the prime minister will take during his visit, including the re-painting of electricity poles, laying of flowers and grass on road islands, and road repairs.

A small farm belonging to Sombat Sri-sura, 40, at Ban Nuan Suan Kluay village was transformed from a modest vegetable farm to a model farm under the sufficiency economy concept.

Land reform officials also built a new cottage for her family, developed areas to raise cows and ducks and dug a fish pond. They brought tap water to the village and dug an underground well for Mrs Sombat to water her vegetables.

"It's like a dream. I could not believe my luck when all these things happened to me in less than a month," said Mrs Sombat.

"I had spent so much money in the past two years travelling to the land office in Muang district to ask them to measure my land but they never came. This time they granted me a Sor Por Kor [agricultural land reform document] straight away, which I will receive from Mr Thaksin when he visits my model farm next week," she said.

Pridi Sae-ang, a teacher at Ban Tha Sala school, said the changes were phak chee roi na -- cosmetic only.

"I don't understand why they did not simply choose a model farm from a village that already grows vegetables for a living, like Ban Nuan Naree, rather than spending great efforts transforming another farm."

Kumpon Sinthu, 44, from Ban Nuan Suan Kluay, called on Mr Thaksin to visit her village twice a year so officials would pay more attention to people's problems.

"I had never seen so many government cars running along our small dirt road. The road linking our village to the school and the main road was quickly repaired last month after several years of neglect," she said.

Ms Kumpon said officials told her to put up fences around her house to beautify the village for the prime minister's sake, but she refused because she didn't have any money.

"I will be happy to see Mr Thaksin in person because he has brought many changes to our village such as tap water and a better road to the school," she said.

Roi Et Governor Nopporn Chantaratong denied any advance preparation had been done, saying Mr Thaksin wanted to experience people's way of life so he could solve their problems effectively.

Date Posted: 1/13/2006