Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is reshaping his government's communications strategy by appointing a new spokesman and introducing a weekly live television programme featuring him and Cabinet ministers to provide more channels through which to explain the administration's work to the public.
Anutin said the decision to launch the weekly ‘Talk with Anutin's Cabinet’ programme on Saturdays came after the government had been in office for about six months. The Public Relations Department, under PM's Office Minister Supamas Isarabhakdi, had discussed the programme with him, he said.
Anutin said previous governments had used similar programmes to communicate with the public, citing the former ‘Prime Minister Meets the People’ programme.
Under the new arrangement, Cabinet ministers will take turns appearing on the programme each week to explain their work and keep the public informed. The government will try to have as many ministers as possible appear on the programme, he said.
A schedule for Anutin himself to appear on the programme has not yet been set.
Commenting on the appointment of Ekkapob Pianpises as the government's new spokesman, replacing Rachada Dhnadirek, Anutin said his main task would be to communicate to the public what the government had been doing.
Asked whether Ekkapob would focus on political counterattacks, Anutin said: "It is clarification, not political counterattack. Whatever issues arise, we should explain them so that all sides are informed about any questions or concerns."
The Cabinet is expected to consider Ekkapob's appointment at its meeting tomorrow.
Meanwhile, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office, Anutin has accepted Rachada's resignation as government spokesperson, effective today.
In a separate announcement, Ekkapob has also resigned as vice minister, effective September 7. Rachada is tipped to be appointed to a vice-ministerial position.
Ekkapob is a Bhumjaithai Party member and is 35th on the party's party-list candidate roster. He previously served as a Move Forward Party MP for Chiang Rai.
He was also a spokesman for the House Public Health Committee and deputy chairman of a special House committee studying ways to regulate the use of agricultural chemicals.
A medical graduate of Prince of Songkla University, Ekkapob trained in family medicine and previously worked at several hospitals in Chiang Rai. He also served as a lecturer at Mae Fah Luang University's School of Medicine.
Ekkapob attracted attention in February 2021 when he broke with the Move Forward Party's position during a no-confidence vote against the government of then-prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. He voted to support Anutin, who was deputy prime minister and public health minister at the time.
