POLITICS
Sahas handling affairs at Foreign Ministry
THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL
Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said yesterday that Tej Bunnag was pressured by people close to him, including his wife, to resign as foreign minister. Mr Samak, addressing the nation through a Public Relations Department radio network, said he had sought His Majesty the King's approval for Mr Tej to help the government settle the Preah Vihear temple issue.
Mr Tej served as adviser to His Majesty's principal private secretary before he became foreign minister. Mr Tej proved to be a professional and that pleased everyone, Mr Samak said.
He said Mr Tej later wrote that he was pressured by many people including his wife, who could not tolerate the fact that her husband had joined a government facing a barrage of criticism. Mr Samak said he sympathised with Mr Tej.
''He said he could not withstand the pressure from all sides ... He was a government official. He was not as persistent as I am,'' he said.
He quoted Mr Tej as saying to him that their friendship would remain the same and he thanked Mr Tej for helping his government achieve many missions.
Asean secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan yesterday urged the government to find a replacement for Mr Tej right away to secure Thailand's status as the host of the Asean summit in December.
Mr Surin said many nations feared Mr Tej's resignation could bring about a major change to the government.
He assured them there would not be any more violence although a state of emergency was in effect.
He believes the parliamentary system can solve the country's problems.
Foreign Ministry staff were shocked by Mr Tej's sudden resignation on Wednesday.
It was too soon for him to go, many staff said.
A source close to the minister said Mr Tej, who took the post in July, had not intended to stay on for very long as his wife was ill.
Despite the short spell in office, he accomplished a great deal. His primary mission was to deal with the Thai-Cambodian border dispute involving the Preah Vihear temple.
The source said many staff at the Foreign Ministry understood the difficulty he had in trying to explain the ongoing political strife to other countries.
Another source said Mr Tej will write a letter to thank the ministry staff as he did not have time to say goodbye to them.
Deputy Prime Minister Sahas Banditkul, who oversees foreign affairs, said he was ready to take care of issues at the ministry if he was appointed to replace Mr Tej.
The source said Mr Sahas had no problem working with ministry officials.
He performed well at the Asean Foreign Ministerial Meeting in Singapore in July when he acted on behalf of the foreign minister. The post had just been left vacant by the resignation of Noppadon Pattama, Mr Tej's predecessor.
Mr Noppadon resigned under duress over the Preah Vihear crisis sparked by the inclusion of the old temple on the World Herritage List.
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