Capture, Corruption and Cronyism – The Case of Telecommunications in the Kingdom of Thailand

25 Pages Posted: 24 Oct 2011

See all articles by Ewan Sutherland

Ewan Sutherland

University of the Witwatersrand, LINK Centre

Date Written: October 23, 2011

Abstract

Telecommunications in Thailand have been shaped by Thaksin Shinawatra as CEO of the largest mobile operator. Unlike Indonesia where there was bribery and nepotism, Thaksin created a unique form of governance eliminating politicians as intermediaries becoming both patron and client, creating his own political party and winning two elections. Five years after he sold his business to Singapore and was consequently deposed by the military, the complexities of the system he created proved too difficult to resolve, leaving overly concentrated markets, legal and commercial uncertainties, made worse by the political instability still reverberating from the disruptions he caused.

Keywords: Asia, Thailand, Telecommunications, Cronyism, Thaksin, Governance

JEL Classification: l96, R38, F23, F43, H11, K10, K42, l16, l33, l51, M14

Suggested Citation

Sutherland, Ewan, Capture, Corruption and Cronyism – The Case of Telecommunications in the Kingdom of Thailand (October 23, 2011). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1948225 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1948225

Ewan Sutherland (Contact Author)

University of the Witwatersrand, LINK Centre ( email )

1 Jan Smuts Avenue
Wits
Johannesburg, Gauteng 2000
South Africa

HOME PAGE: http://link.wits.ac.za/

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