Coup rumors within political and business circles have reached a crescendo this past week with many claiming that a putsch was imminent due to the worsening economic and Covid-19 situation.
The government has struggled to contain the pandemic with the country reporting more than 5,000 cases per day since June 28 with that number peaking over 10,000 cases per day for the past week.
The third wave, which started in Bangkok and surrounding provinces, has led to 397,612 cases and 3,408 deaths since April 1.
As a result of the crisis and a widely shared fake document which purported to show army orders preparing for a coup, many within the business community began to spread the rumor.
“We have to accept that the truth, the government is indecisive and lacks the trust from the people. Coup rumors comes out when the government is not competent,” said Pheu Thai Deputy Leader Pichai Narithapan.
Since the rumors began, the army spokesman has come out to say that there will not be a coup. This is corroborated by sources within the military that tell Thai Enquirer that none is forthcoming.
However, opposition politicians warn that the public must maintain their vigilance.
Rangsiman Rome, a Move Forward MP, told Thai Enquirer that the denials are not always accurate as many times that a coup happens, “it is the army chief who denies that there will be a coup.”
“We have to accept that in our political system the armed forces have never been reformed to be under a civilian government,” he said. “As long as they are not under a civilian government, they can use their authority and our tax money to stage a coup.”
“The people need to keep an eye on this.” – ThaiEnquirer.Com
