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48 การประชุมวิชาการ
สถาบันพระปกเกล้า ครั้งที่ 16

In our system, when you are rich, you are respected. We never ask “how did you
get your riches?” We don’t ask “แหวนนี้ท่านได้แต่ใดมา” We don’t ask “where did you

get your ring from?” It is a poem that all Thais know. Where do you get this ring of
yours? How do you get your riches? When you have power, you have network, you
patronize people, you fix people’s problems with the police, attorneys, courts, and

every power in the land. You can fix because you have the wealth. Corruption distorts
power relations in the state, and corruption is going to be the cause of so many

problems that we will face in the future if we are not able to put it under control.
So, where to find that balance between wealth, power, responsibility, and the right to
put that name down? Without that name, you don’t get the license, but with that

name, give me 30 percent. That kind of corruption will lead to more power corruption
and to absolute power. And you know what absolute power does? Absolute power

corrupts absolutely. Concentrated power suffocates people. And with the kind of
bureaucracy that we have, we suffocate people around the country - “คนทั่วทั้งแผ่นดิน
อึดอัด ไม่มีอากาศหายใจ ไม่มีที่ยืน” - because of that kind of abuse of power through

bureaucracy, through corruption, through taking advantage of that power.

And then the fifth item that you will be talking about would be the relationship
between formal political institutions - the parliament, the political parties, the
ombudsman and various bureaucracies under the political leadership. The formal

structure of power and the people, people’s politics. - “การเมืองภาคประชาชน” If there
is less than one minute of participation in the political process of the country and no

other interest and opportunities to participate in between elections, that democracy is
not going to last; that democracy is going to fail, that democracy is going to be
taken advantage of, that system is going to be hijacked for self-interest, group

interest, party interest. So the people, the civil society, the source of power, source
of sovereignty will have to be given the space so that they can play their role in all

areas of public affairs, not only on the election day because that is very dangerous.
When you participate only three minutes in an election booth, that three minutes will
be very precious for others because they can buy it. They can give you money, and

you do not care because you are only interested in the three minutes that you were
there in the election booth. We must find a new balance for participation, for space,

for interaction between the people and the formal institutions of our politics, our
democracy, hopefully our new democracy.

The last item, I think, is the heart of the problem, and I have been talking
about this for many years, and that is the issue of sharing the power between the