Coronavirus: Prayuth takes aim at Thailand’s celebrities as vaccine outrage mounts
- Amid record deaths, stalling vaccinations and questions over the Chinese-made Sinovac jab, the Thai leader is under fire from former supporters and the rich and famous
- Rather than apologise, his administration has gone into attack mode, with defamation claims and a ban on ‘false messages’ in the media
Thailand’s notoriously thin-skinned prime minister, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, appears to have become especially sensitive to his critics as the coronavirus runs rampant, sinks the economy and exposes his administration to accusations of incompetence over its vaccination campaign, even from his one-time fans.
Since April, a third wave of infections has left nearly 4,900 people dead, with daily cases hitting a record 18,000 over the weekend. On Monday there was another record, with 178 people dying of the virus as more restrictions were imposed across over half of the country.
Critics lay much of the blame on the country’s stuttering vaccination programme. Just 3.8 million Thais have received two jabs, a fraction of the country’s 70 million population.
Anger is visible on Bangkok’s streets.
On Sunday hundreds of protesters in cars and on motorcycles took part in a “car mob”, driving around central and northern Bangkok and honking their horns to demand Prayuth’s resignation. They were met by riot police deploying water cannons, stun grenades and tear gas.
