Tourism operators have expressed doubts about the abilities of some parties’ prime ministerial candidates, urging them to appoint ministers with genuine capabilities to address severe obstacles in each sector, rather than using the position as a reward or trading on family legacies.
Thienprasit Chaiyapatranun, president of the Thai Hotels Association (THA), said the prime ministerial candidate lists are no surprise, resembling the previous election.
While there may be some new faces, he said they still come from the same influential political families, making it hard to believe they can truly lead the administration without being influenced by leaders behind the scenes.
Since the 2023 election, Mr Thienprasit said political parties have not offered any compelling candidates for prime minister, except for Srettha Thavisin of Pheu Thai — a well-known businessman who demonstrated his ability to apply business administration skills to accelerate economic policies with decisiveness, including implementing free-visa programmes for more than 50 countries.
“Political parties should not cling to the same practices when selecting prime ministerial candidates and ministers,” he said.
“The country needs high-calibre leaders to tackle specific challenges. At the very least, if they cannot appoint such individuals as prime ministers or ministers, they should engage them as consultants.”
Mr Thienprasit said tourism operators credited the Bhumjaithai Party-led government for appointing three ministers from outside the party, including Foreign Affairs Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Commerce Minister Suphajee Suthumpun and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas.
He said political parties should make such bold moves again if they want to win the election next year, as the performance of those ministers has already proven to be outstanding compared with other politicians who lack expertise in those areas.
La-iad Bungsrithong, a board advisor of the THA, said political uncertainties over the past two years have forced tourism operators to adapt without relying on government policies, which tend to change whenever new ministers take office.
She said four tourism and sports ministers in the past two years were unable to drive the tourism industry to its full potential, leaving urgent issues unattended.
For instance, discontinuity in administration caused the country to miss opportunities to benefit from hosting the SEA Games 2025, despite the event’s potential to boost the inbound market.
Mrs La-iad said the prime ministerial candidates revealed so far still lack a compelling figure.
Reflecting on the past three prime ministers, she said Anutin Charnvirakul stood out for his ability to identify and address urgent issues, while Mr Srettha was a decisive leader, but did not have enough time to make a lasting impact.
