Despite vehement denials by his close aides that Prime Minister and regime leader Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha's social media campaign is all about his political future, the facts speak for themselves.Gen Prayut's launch of personal Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts over the weekend has caused a major stir.
On Wednesday, Buddhipongse Punnakanta, deputy secretary-general to the PM, admitted that the online campaign was his brainchild as Gen Prayut needs a better channel to communicate with the public so he can react more quickly to events.
Yet, critics have frowned at the move which they complain gives the junta leader a political advantage at a time when political parties are banned from using digital platforms for political campaigns. Besides, the regime has maintained its ban on political activities, including gatherings of five persons or more. Certain academics and activists have been targeted under this dubious junta order.
