New government spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkiat jokes he was picked because he has free time as a non-MP – but his strong communication skills, honed from a young age, likely mattered more.
Appointed as the government’s public face in early October, Siripong credits his background as a young debater and storyteller for equipping him with the skills needed for his new job.
A deputy Bhumjaithai leader since March last year, he was chosen as spokesperson after party leader Anutin Charnvirakul became Thailand’s 32nd prime minister in September.
Siripong, 49, sharpened his talents in argument and debate while studying at the prestigious King's College boarding school in Nakhon Pathom province.
“Thanks to my communication skills, my classmates often chose me to present group papers. I played [video] games while waiting for them to do the reports. My job was to read the finished papers and present them before the class,” Siripong told media recently.
Recognising his flair for presentation, his schoolmates got him to read latest editions of comic books so he could share the story with the whole class.
“I gathered details from the books and retold the stories in my style – often with gestures included," he recounted, adding that friends sometimes found his version more fun than the original.
As a school debater, he was often chosen to give the concluding speech for his team. “I was not good at making quick, witty arguments,” he noted.
Childhood dream
Hailing from the northeastern province of Sisaket, Siripong revealed that his childhood dream was to follow in his father Chatmongkol’s footsteps and become the local mayor.
His father, now 69, has served as the mayor of Sisaket since 1983 and is now in his 10th term, making him the longest-serving mayor in Thailand.
“My father became a mayor when I was a first-grader, aged six or seven,” said Siripong, now 49.
“My teacher once told me to ask my father to repair the potholed road in front of the school. At the time, I wondered why my dad had anything to do with that.”
It was only later that he learned his father served the local community as mayor and local politician.
However, Siripong chose to enter national politics instead, joining the Chart Thai Party in 2004. He failed to win a seat in his first election the following year but succeeded in 2007, representing his home province in Parliament.
Just 11 months later, however, he was among Chart Thai executives banned for five years from politics after the party was dissolved for electoral fraud.
During his break from politics, he was appointed president of the Sisaket Chamber of Commerce at 32, the youngest at the time. He was credited with helping Sisaket Volcanic Durian earn registration as a geographically identified (GI) product of the region.
He has also headed the Sisaket Sports Association since 2012 and served on the Sports Authority of Thailand board from 2015 to 2018.
Difficult decision
After his political ban expired, Siripong switched to Bhumjaithai and was re-elected as a Sisaket MP in 2019.
He later made headlines by defying his party during the parliamentary vote to select coup-maker General Prayut Chan-o-cha as prime minister. Siripong was the only Bhumjaithai MP to abstain, while others – including Anutin – voted for Prayut.
Siripong seemed to agonise over the decision, his eyes brimming with tears after he announced his vote during the televised parliamentary session in June 2019. The move embarrassed his party’s senior leaders but won praise from Prayut’s critics.
He later explained that he had promised his electorate he would vote for his party leader, saying, “I had to choose between betraying my party colleagues or betraying my electorate by following the party’s resolution.”
Siripong failed in his re-election bid in 2023, but Bhumjaithai’s education minister, Permpoon Chidchob, appointed him as his vice minister and spokesman for the Education Ministry.
Businessman turned politician
Born in Sisaket on August 26, 1976, Siripong earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Rangsit University, a master’s in information technology management from the University of Colorado, Denver in the US, and a doctorate in tropical agriculture from Kasetsart University.
Before entering politics, he ran a successful property firm that built over 1,000 units in his home province and neighbouring Ubon Ratchathani. He later diversified into other businesses, including restaurants, coffee shops, and an imported-car dealership.
Siripong has also financed several Thai films featuring the Isaan dialect of Northeast Thailand. He served as executive producer for the popular “Thi Baan” comedy series and the 2023 award-winning blockbuster “The Undertaker”, which earned 730 million baht at the box office.
He had assets of 237.1 million baht and debts of 24.2 million after completing his term as an MP in June 2023, according to his declaration to the National Anti-Corruption Commission. His fortune includes 1.3 million baht in bank deposits, 67 million in investments, 24 land plots valued at 186 million, six houses worth 18.2 million, and two cars worth 23.3 million.
