Challenges ahead
Yingluck Shinwatra enters parliament early in the morning on the day she was endorsed by MPs as prime minister-elect.
By Terry Fredrickson
Bangkok Post reporter Nattaya Chetchotiros details some of the main challenges facing Yingluck Shinawatra when she becomes prime minister later today.
Yingluck's 49-day rise to top job was the easy part
Dealing with military, red shirt challenges will be tricky
Nattaya Chetchotiros
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It took Yingluck Shinawatra only 49 days to rise to the top political post of prime minister and she made few blunders on that journey despite being thrown into the harsh media spotlight.
House Speaker Somsak Kiatsuranont has been granted an audience with His Majesty the King today to receive the royal command endorsing Ms Yingluck as prime minister.
His audience with the King is set for 5.30pm at Siriraj Hospital, according to the Secretariat of the House of Representatives.
The cabinet lineup is expected to be submitted for royal approval tomorrow, said Pheu Thai spokesman Prompong Nopparit.
Ms Yingluck's first priority is to tackle flooding and speed up rehabilitation work. The prime minister-elect has four years ahead of her in this term and many issues are likely to arise.
But there are some crucial ones she needs to get a grip on to prove she has the credibility and leadership she needs to tackle the rest. The relationship between the Pheu Thai Party and the red shirt United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) will always be a difficult issue to handle.
Part of the credit for Pheu Thai's decisive victory must go to the red shirts.
But several core red shirt members have lese majeste charges to answer, which could affect their standing with the public.
It remains to be seen how the prime minister-elect will keep them appeased.
Finding a defence minister who is accepted by the armed forces is not an easy task.
Pheu Thai has yet to find a candidate who appeals to the military top brass. They need to be assured that the defence minister will not tamper with their affairs, especially reshuffles.
Her next challenge is convincing the public that her administration is not being run by her powerful elder brother, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Ms Yingluck will also have to prove that the government's policy of achieving national reconciliation after last year's street riots, which she inherits from the Democrats, is not just lip service or an empty campaign promise.
She has announced that she will not interfere in the work of the Truth for Reconciliation Commission chaired by Kanit na Nakorn, which is looking into the clashes between troops and protesters last year.
On the foreign policy front, the Yingluck government needs to restore ties with neighbours Thailand has alienated over past years in the wake of border disputes with Cambodia.
Former foreign minister Surakiart Sathirathai has suggested Julapong Nonsichai, ambassador to Oslo, would be an appropriate choice of foreign minister. Mr Julapong is well respected by Foreign Ministry staff and is not seen as Thaksin's lackey.
You can read previous article at www.bangkokpost.com/learning/all-article.
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Vocabulary
endorse – to officially approve รับรอง
elect – of someone who has been elected to a position but has not yet taken power ว่าที่
deal with – to take action to solve a problem จัดการปัญหา
challenge – something that needs a lot of skill, energy, and determination to deal with or achieve สิ่งที่ท้าทาย, การท้าทาย
tricky – difficult to do or deal with ยาก
post – a job in a company or organisation ตำแหน่งการงาน
blunder – a careless or embarrassing mistake ความผิดพลาดจากความสะเพร่า
harsh – strict, unkind and often unfair อย่างรุนแรง
media – radio, television, newspaper, the Internet, considered as a group สื่อ
spotlight – the centre of public attention จุดสนใจของผู้คน, เป็นที่สนใจ
House Speaker – the person who is in charge of most of the activities of the House of Representatives ประธานสภาผู้แทนราษฎร
grant an audience – (of a king or queen) to allow a meeting to be held with the ruler พระราชทานพระราชวโรกาสให้พสกนิกร หรือข้าราชการเข้าเฝ้าทูลละอองธุลีพระบาม
command – an order คำสั่ง
secretariat – a group of senior people within a government or organisation สำนักเลขาธิการ
House of Representatives – the main lawmaking body in Thailand, consisting of 500 members สภาผู้แทนราษฎร
cabinet – the group of government ministers who make and approve government policy คณะรัฐมนตรี
lineup – a group or team of people who are involved in a particular job or activity รายชื่อของผู้เกี่ยวข้อง
submit – to formally give something to someone so that can make a decision about it ยื่น (เอกสาร) เพื่อการพิจารณา
priority – something important that needs to be done first or needs more attention than anything else สิ่งที่สำคัญที่สุดเป็นอันดับแรก
tackle – to make an organised and determine attempt to deal with a problem จัดการ
rehabilitation – making a system, building, etc., suitable for use again, i.e., bringing it back to a good condition การฟื้นฟูสภาพกิจการ
issue – a problem that needs to be considered ประเด็น
arise – to happen as a result of a particular situation เกิดขึ้น
crucial – extremely important because it effects the result of something สำคัญยิ่ง
get a grip on – to take control of
credibility – the degree to which someone or something can be believed or trusted ความน่าเชื่อถือ,ความน่าไว้วางใจ
United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) – the group originally formed to demonstrate against the 2006 coup and which supported the Somchai Wongsawat government against the PAD and which led the fight against the Abhisit government. They are known for wearing red shirts แนวร่วมประชาธิปไตยต่อต้านเผด็จการแห่งชาต
handle – to take action in order to deal with a difficult situation ดูแล, จัดการ
decisive – making the final result of a situation completely certain ซึ่งมีลักษณะชี้ขาด,แน่วแน่,ซึ่งตัดสินใจแล้ว
core member – one of the most active or most important members of a group แกนนำ
lese majeste – the crime of offending, threatening or showing disrespect for a member of the royal family หมิ่นพระบรมเดชานุภาพ
charge – an official statement accusing someone of committing a crime ข้อหา
standing – the position or reputation of somebody/something within a group of people or in an organisation ,ชื่อเสียง
appease – to say or do something in order to make someone feel less angry ปลอบใจ หรือทำให้เป็นที่พอใจ
task – something that you have to do หน้าที่; ภารกิจ
candidate – one of the people being considered for a job ตัวแทนที่ส่งเข้ารับตำแหน่ง
appeal to – to cause someone to like or want something ดึงดูดใจ ทำให้สนใจ
top brass – the people with the highest positions of authority, especially in the armed forces บุคคลสำคัญ
assure – to tell something that something is true or will definitely happen ให้ความมั่นใจ, ยืนยัน
tamper with – to try to change something that should not be changed เปลี่ยนเพื่อทำลาย
affairs – events affecting a government, military, organisation, etc. กรณียกิจ, กิจธุระ
reshuffle – the process of changing the jobs or responsibilities of people in a particular group or organisation การปรับหรือโยกย้ายตำแหน่งคนในองค์กร
administration – government รัฐบาล
elder – older ที่อายุมากกว่า
reconciliation – the process of creating a new and friendly relationship again with someone you argued with or fought with การปรองดอง
riot – a violent protest by a group of people ความไม่สงบ การจลาจล
inherit – to have responsibility for a situation that someone has started and left for you to deal with สืบทอดจาก, ได้รับมรดกจาก
lip service – to say that you approve or support something, without proving your support by doing it
campaign – a planned series of activities designed to persuade voters to vote for a particular candidate or political party การรณรงค์หาสียง
interfere – to deliberately become involved in a situation and try to influence the way that it develops, although you have no right to do this แทรกแซง
commission – a group of people who have been formally chosen to discover information about a problem or examine the reasons why the problem exists คณะกรรมการ, คณะกรรมาธิการ
chair – to be the person in charge of a meeting, committee, or company ดำรงตำแหน่งประธาน, ทำหน้าที่ในฐานะประธาน
clash – a fight between groups of people การปะทะกันสองฝ่าย
troops – soldiers, especially in large numbers กองทหาร
front – a particular area of activity ด้าน
restore – to bring back to good condition ฟื้นฟูสภาพ
ties – relations; connections ความสัมพันธ์
alienate – to make somebody less friendly or sympathetic towards you; to make somebody feel that they do not belong in a particular group ทำให้เหินห่าง, ทำให้แตกแยก, เมินหมาง, ไม่เป็นมิตร
in the wake of – happening after an event or as a result of it สืบเนื่องมาจาก
border – the official line separating two areas, regions or countries เขตแดน อาณาเขต
dispute – a serious disagreement การโต้เถียง, ความขัดแย้ง
ambassador – a senior official who lives in a foreign country and represents his or her own country there เอกอัครราชทูต
appropriate – suitable or right for a particular situation or purpose ที่เหมาะสม
respected – admired by many people for your qualities or achievements ที่เคารพ
lackey – a person who is treated like a servant or who behaves like one ขี้ข้า, ผู้ติดตาม
