Pornthip serves Thailand exactly as needed

If forensic pathologist Khunying Pornthip Rojanasunand chose to enter politics in the upcoming general election, she could expect a comfortable win in any constituency in this country. Pornthip has always been ranked at the top of opinion polls as one of Thailand's most popular persons. Recently her popularity has skyrocketed, thanks to her devotion to the gruesome task of trying to identify the decomposing bodies of tsunami victims in the South. Rumours had it that she was at one point a would-be candidate to represent Thai Rak Thai in the Bangkok governor election last year.

However, this brainy woman with her weird hairdo made it clear she had no political ambitions. Good for her. She is too smart and knows that politics has its downsides.

Here are "10 Reasons Why Pornthip Should Not Enter Politics":

1. She won't have time to do the job she does best. Dubbed "Dr Death" by the foreign media, Pornthip's good reputation is tied to her expertise in handling high-profile forensic investigation cases, such as the suspected murder of Hangthong Thammawattana, the Tak Bai tragedy involving Muslim detainees and, most recently, the identification of tsunami victims.

2. She may have to abandon her colourful fright hairdo. Besides her work, Pornthip is recognised as a forensic pathologist who studiously maintains her eye-catching hair style. Her trademark spiky, dyed hair changed the public's perception of what a doctor should look like.

She has explained that her hard, stressful work necessitates a hair style that is easy to manage. If Pornthip becomes a politician, she might find it too stressful to maintain her trademark hairdo. Maintaining their hair in tip-top condition is the prime responsibility of all women.

3. Many dead bodies would no longer be able to tell the truth. Besides, once in politics, she would never be able to tell the whole truth herself. In one of her famous books, "Sob Phoot Dai" (Dead Bodies Can Talk), she describes how forensic evidence and autopsies conducted on corpses have helped the authorities decipher the real cause of many a mysterious death.

Hence, dead men do tell tales. And a politician Pornthip would not be able to speak her mind, since we all know that politicians lie all the time.

4. Which brings us to the fact that Pornthip appears not to know how to lie. In the wake of the Tak Bai incident, when more than 80 Muslim protesters were found dead in unusual circumstances, she flew to Narathiwat to conduct the investigation. As it turned out, she was "used" by the government to tell the media and the world the cause of the protestors' death. The usually talkative Pornthip became an awkward speaker, as everybody could see that she was telling less than what she knew.

She did deny that she was whitewashing anyone, but it was one of the rare incidents when Pornthip was economical with her words.

Since she can't lie convincingly, she is ill-equipped to become a politician.

5. There would be one reliable forensics expert less to take care of the dead. Don't forget, dead bodies need decent and fair treatment, too, to tell the truth. Pornthip would be too busy arguing petty matters like politicians do instead of conducting her real and more useful work. When a person is murdered, who will go through the gruesome process to see that he or she receives justice? Surely, one cannot expect the police to handle this job unchecked?

6. As a forensics expert, she has the ears of the people. Once in politics, people would no longer trust her. Even PM Thaksin Shinawatra listens to her and stands ready to provide his support. But once she is one of the party faithful, she would be treated just like any other party functionary.

7. The dead would no longer befriend her, while her enemies would multiply. Whyso? Because in politics, again, she would not be able to speak the plain truth about high-profile criminal cases. The government sometimes must hide some ugly truths from the public, and she would be expected to become an accomplice.

8. She won't have time to write more books. She needs to add more titles like "Khon Kin Sob" (Man Eats Body), "Khon Lak Sob" (Man Steals Body), "Khon Son Sob" (Man Conceals Body) and may other anxiously awaited titles in the series.

9. In politics, she won't be allowed to break down in tears on anybody's shoulder. Pornthip couldn't hold back her tears and broke down while PM Thaksin was asking her about her work at Wat Yan Yao in Phang Nga. Remember when Pavena Hongsakul was heartbroken from her failure in the Bangkok election under TRT banner? She just had no choice but to hold back her tears at a time when it was most appropriate to cry a river. Pavena only showed red eyes and a quivering voice.

10. There won't be enough time for family. Pornthip is known as a family person. Despite her hard work, she always has time for her lovely family. Her husband and daughter truly understand her devotion to public service. But if she entered politics, she would be too busy doing petty politicians things. It is unlikely that her family wouldl enjoy that.

Published on Jan 15, 2005