From The Nation:

Privy councillor Surayud Chulanont yesterday conceded that the 2006 coup had not been able to put politics back on course as anticipated and that two years had lapsed with continuing turmoil.”The political divide persists, and parties concerned should take part in forging reconciliation,” he said, marking the second anniversary of the September 19 seizure of power in which he became interim prime minister.

He said that under his interim government the political crisis had dissipated somewhat but several issues remained unsolved. He urged the people to raise their own awareness of politics at the national and local levels in order to safeguard their interests.

Voters hold the key to screening and electing competent and honest leaders, he said, for if voters could make informed judgements when casting votes, then national and local governments would be run by good and just politicians. Because of the flawed electoral system, many local governments are presently plagued by corruption, he said. He called on the opposing camps to heed the royal advice on unity. It is the collective responsibility of everyone to forge national unity, without which the country cannot advance, he said.

If there is a problem with Thailand’s democratic development, it’s not hard to see where it lies!