New Vice-Governor arrives Monday

PHUKET: A new Vice-Governor has been named to replace Manit Wattanasen, who was transferred this week to Pattani (see also https://thethaiger.com/news/index.asp?Id=2811 .) He is Pongpow Ketthong, originally from Phrae province. Most recently he was Chief Inspector in the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation at the Ministry of Interior in Bangkok, but before that his government service took him to Chon Buri, Samut Prakan and Prachin Buri, all coastal provinces. “My life seems to be connected to the sea,” he told the Gazette. Asked about his predecessor, he said, “In my opinion, [K. Manit] has made a good move – he has abilities, so that is why his superiors have sent him there [to Pattani].” K. Pongpow said that he was delighted to be moving to Phuket, which he described as one of the most highly developed provinces in Thailand. Explaining that he has held a wide variety of government posts, ranging from district chief to chief inspector, he said, “I don’t know yet what my specific role will be in Phuket; I will find out when I meet [Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi] on Monday. “However, my specialities are public relations and human resource development. I think the latter is the more important.”