Thailand's coup leader named 2006 Man of the Year: Poll

BANGKOK, Dec 31 (TNA) - Gen. Sonthi Boonyaratkalin, army chief and chairman of Thailand's Council for National Security (CNS), which toppled the elected government of prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra on September 19, was named 2006 Man of the Year in an opinion poll released on Sunday.

The result of the poll, conducted by Assumption University's ABAC Poll, sampling 4,609 people in 17 provinces nationwide between December 13-30, showed that Mr. Thaksin, Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, Privy Council chairman Prem Tinsulanonda and media tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul who led protests against Mr. Thaksin before he was ousted from his post ranked second, third, fourth and fifth respectively as most popular individuals in the country in 2006.

According to Noppadol Kannikar, ABAC Poll Centre director, the five leading "good news" events that occurred this year were the announcement by Gen. Sonthi that the military would not cling on to power following the bloodless coup on September 19, an announcement by Mr. Thaksin soon after a general election that he would take a break from politics, the appointment of Gen. Surayud as prime minister and the role of the courts in helping solve political crisis in the beginning of this year.

Topping the list of the five biggest "bad news" stories were clashes between anti- and pro-Thaksin demonstrators, charges by Mr. Thaksin that an influential person outside the constitution was behind the protestors to oust him, charges that Gen. Surayud had allegedly built a house on land which was intended for landless farmers in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, chaos from the April 2 snap election which was later annulled by the Supreme Administrative Court, and tax evasion by relatives of Mr. Thaksin.

The majority of respondents said that their wish for the new year is that they want the interim government to help solve poverty, resolve violence in the three southern border provinces, punish corrupt people, create unity, solve the narcotics problem and developing the education system.

TNA