TPC gets a new acting CEO
November 4, 2009 by Chanida Sa-ngiamphaisalsuk
Filed under Thailand
A new acting president has been appointed to head the Thailand Privilege Card Company,until the government makes a decision on the company’s future.
TPC chairman of the board, Thongchai Sidama, said the board had appointed, Methavee Tunwattanapong, as the company’s acting president effective, 3 November.
Ms Methavee will replace Udom Metathamrongsiri, who returns to Tourism Authority of Thailand as its acting deputy governor for administration, based on a TAT board resolution, 21 October.
Methavee Tunwattanapong
Ms Methavee will work as acting president until the Cabinet reviews the future of the project.
She is also a member of the TAT board and a member of the TAT governor selecting committee. Up until now she has worked as an English language professor at Ubon Ratchathani University in Ubon Ratchathani province.
Meanwhile, the board expects the card’s future to be resolved by next week if the Cabinet considers the proposals and reports on TPC.
The Minister of Tourism and Sports will present four options to the Cabinet: abandon; restructure; joint venture or transfer to TAT.
At present, the company has Bt338 million cash in hand and Bt1,427 million in an accumulated debt. It has to provide services to 2,570 members. The company’s sales and marketing activities have been frozen following the Cabinet’s resolution last February.
Wonder if the original victims were given free tickets to the Bangkok Film Festival by the famous Greens. This whole thing has been tarred with scandal from Day One, and clearly has to be killed off for the sake of mercy. It reeks of all the excesses of the Thaksin era and before.
Just a reminder – at launch in 2003:
“A first batch of 100,000 cards have been made and are ready for sale, the number of this first batch was decided by the TAT, based on the current ability of privileges on offer to ensure the project’s success, said TAT governor Khun Juthamas Siriwan.
“Thailand’s aim is to sell 300,000 cards in the first year of the “VIP Card” campaign. A new company under the name of “Thailand Privilege Card Club”, totally owned by the Tourism Authority of Thailand has been set up to run the project.”
Agree with John.
I do hope the person coming into this position can duck because it is still
going to hit the fan.
There is a little too much “acting” going on here and no actual solution in sight. The whole thing is fraudulent and has clearly failed, looking at the debt ratio. There are simply far too few people who fell for the scam and no other takers on the horizon, so scrapping it and saying sorry are the only options. As if.