Thailand's military generals seized power in 2014 vowing to end the kingdom's endemic corruption, but what has followed has been a weakening of the very institutions needed to combat graft. Professor Mark S. Cogan argues the antidote lays in a thriving democracy.
Last week, International Anti-Corruption Day came and went in Thailand without much notice.
Scant attention was paid in the media on December 9, except for an article about a «commitment» by Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to fight corruption and nepotism. The junta changed the composition of the Court and ruled that vacant seats were to be filled by high-ranking bureaucrats.
Among ASEAN states, Thailand ranks the worst for trust in state institutions, with 71% of people indicating they had no trust in government, while 88% of Thais believe corruption is a big problem.
The risk to economic development in Thailand comes from its preoccupation with its domestic political instability, which interferes with anti-corruption efforts, and at the institutional level, exacerbates the problem
This article was written by MARK S. COGAN
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