Mr. Thaksin's re-entry into the political arena since early April has taken two forms. The first is a series of policy proposals such as lowering corporate tax rates, stimulating domestic demand and promoting innovation through greater political freedom. As good as those might seem in theory at least to some people, coming from Mr. Thaksin the ideas are gimmicky, dilettantish and often cynical. His late conversion to the cause of political freedom fools no one, and his thoughts about fiscal policy are rooted in a superficial understanding of Thailand's competitiveness problem.
As is typical of Mr. Thaksin, then, these proposals fail to amount to a coherent program of government or a formula for addressing Thailand's most fundamental problems of social division, inadequate human capital, and diminishing confidence in leading institutions. They serve as a reminder that during Mr. Thaksin's 2001-06 premiership violence in the Muslim south spiraled out of control not least because of his profound lack of interest in the processes of government.
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