Thai Prime Minister Regains Post One Day After Resigning

Chatchai Choonhavan was renamed prime minister Sunday, one day after he resigned amid increasing criticism of his government.

The resignation maneuver was apparently an attempt to revamp his Cabinet.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej signed a royal decree reinstating Chatchai as prime minister. After receiving the reappointment order, Chatchai said: “My immediate policy for the second Chatchai administration is honesty and more competence.”

Chatchai, a 68-year-old former general, quit Saturday after a long-running dispute with the powerful military, which accused his business-oriented government of tolerating corruption and demanded the removal of several Cabinet ministers.

He told reporters Sunday that he had not been pressured by the military into resigning.

All Cabinet ministers automatically lost their positions with the prime minister’s resignation Saturday. Chatchai now will choose a new Cabinet, but it remains to be seen whether he will drop members who had been sharply criticized by the military.

Chatchai came to power in 1988 as the first democratically elected prime minister since 1976.

The generally popular leader has proved a skillful political player, especially in neutralizing the military, which for decades intervened by force. But the military has also insisted on being a “watchdog” over state and society.

Criticism mounted in recent months, with military leaders alleging massive corruption within the highest levels of Chatchai’s seven-party ruling coalition. Some observers also charged that the government had a poor record of fighting poverty while allowing entrepreneurs free rein.

The army has sought the removal of an outspoken minister, Chalerm Yubamrung, whom it accused of using a radio truck to eavesdrop on secret military communications.