Competence needed
Re: "New-look cabinet to set policy agenda", (BP, Sept 5).
When we hire, say, a driver, the main thing we're concerned with is the candidate's competence to do the job -- but not for Thailand's most important jobs, being our prime minister and cabinet members. Say a young lady applied to drive your expensive family car. When asked if she could do the job and all she could say was, "My father has lots of driving experience" -- would you hire her? If you need a farmer, shouldn't you ask what crops the candidate -- not his brother -- has grown or marketed and with what accomplishments?
We rightfully demand that our leaders have clean backgrounds. We should also require that they have demonstrated competence in their chosen areas.
A waste of space
Re: "The New Line-Up", (Front-page graphic, BP, Sept 4).
Whoever designed your front-page graphic of Paetongtarn Shinawatra's new cabinet should be sent straight back to graphics design school.
Most of the graphic was in print so small that it was almost impossible to read, particularly the section with white print on a blue background. Even with a magnifying glass I could not decipher this section. All in all, a waste of something like 50 column centimetres of valuable newspaper space.
See the value in trees
Re: "Seed bomb threat to forest ecology" (Editorial, Sept 1).
The Post editorial is spot-on in warning against the simplistic notion of "seed bombing" for reforestation. Instead, as the editorial urges, the focus should be on the natural regeneration of forests and protecting regenerating vegetation. Regenerating forests naturally by protecting and nurturing seedlings emerging from seeds and root shoots already existing in the soil has numerous advantages over planting seedlings or dropping seeds from the air, including lower costs, growth of tree species that are better adapted to each site, improved water-retention capacity, and resulting forest ecosystems that are healthier and more diverse. The survival rate of planted seedlings is abysmal in many locations, including in Thailand. It's long past time for forestry officials to pay greater attention to the natural regeneration of forests. In any case, whether trees are planted artificially or regenerated naturally, success in restoring forests is only achieved when local people see the benefits of trees and work to protect them. Reforestation cannot be imposed from above -- either by dropping seed bombs from planes or, metaphorically, by office-dwelling officials. Effective engagement of local people is the key to success.
Be sure to fact-check
Re: "Not exile, self exile", (PostBag, Sept 4) & "Thaksin's comeback fuels media chaos", (Opinion, Sept 3).
Echoing David Brown's correction of Kavi Chongkittavorn's opinion on Sept 3 lamenting declining journo professionalism in Thailand, there's no reason for Khun Kavi to wonder "why politicians ... remain silent" while "negative X-factors" like Jatuporn Prompan continually leak details of scandalous politicking yet don't face defamation charges.
Regardless of the whirlpool of information leaks and accusations, professional journalists can still work and indeed have even more workload in checking on whether accusations from "negative X-factors" such as Khun Jatuporn's allegations are factual or not.
And they can also discover how many threats of or attempts at assassination Jatuporn or other "X-factors" and whistle-blowers have faced.
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