Thailand God Father: The Rise and Fall of Somchai KhunPluem.
.When you think about God Father you think about an Italian guy sitting in a bar in The Soprano episode. But what about a sunny tropical in Thailand? When you visit a place like Pattaya have you noticed that maybe there was a God-father figure walking on the Sand? Let me introduce you to one of the famous Thailand Mobster, Somchai KhunPluem aka Chief Poh (Chief for Kamnan or กำนัน เป๊าะ)
Who is Kamnan Poh, Well He is one of the most well-known mobsters in Thailand. Mainly the Eastern Part of Thailand dubbed “The God Father of the East”. He was born in Sansueak sub-district in 1937 to the village headman’s father and the mother who was a butcher, later she established a slaughterhouse.
He has helping the family business since a young age, but he decided to drop from school in Grade 4 and for a while become a bus boy for the local Bang Saen — Sri Racha Route, later he was promoted to driver position.
Later he bought his fishing boat and established his own fishing business, through a connection with his Friend a French Businessman, he later won a license to operate a fishing business in Cambodian water, and rumor then started around him that he profited from the war in Vietnam and later The Cambodian Civil War by illegal smuggling to those countries but the real profit was about to come.
During the 1980s The Thai Government decided to develop development and economy in the Eastern part calling Eastern Economic Corridor or EEC it was at that time Kamnan Poh established a Supplying the material crucial to the development boom such as graves and soil for road and construction, later he joined the construction boom in the region by building his construction business which has many competitors at the time but Kamanan Poh slowly dominate the entire construction sector in the area. This helps him to furthermore expand his empire into hotels, liquor, and real-estate development. He is a mediator between the government and local businesses. He even got elected to the Mayor of Sansuek sub-district (which got promoted to Municipality ) in the ’90s
With enormous power he decided to use it very wisely, like many mobs boss he never pledged loyalty to any political party, he influence the election in his area to the candidate he support in return those politicians must help him secure the bid on the matter of his interest such as a construction bid. Any Party wants to win on his turf you must asked him for the favor. His peak of power was in the later 1990’s precisely after the 1997 constitution was in effect, to some scholars they dubbed” The Golden Age of Godfather Politics” he even got his own local Political Party, His two sons were former MPs in the Parliament. His Eldest son was a former advisor to General Prayuth Chan o Cha, the second is the chairman of Chon Buri Provincial Administrative Organization, and also the Chairman of Chonburi FC.
Some do Challenge his power, in 1990 then Pol-Maj-Gen Seri, a hardline police officer and nemesis of Kamnan Poh orchestrated the raid to his residence accompanied by 300 police commandos, to search for Kamnan’s Arms but later they found no gun and Kamnan Poh who surprisingly not at his residence is furious, somehow Seri were ordered to the dead end position in National Police HQ.
But the fall is inevitable. In 2003 he got arrested on the charge of land corruption, The Court ordered in 2005 to sentence him for 5 years and 4 months. But he evades it and never report to the court, later in 2012 the court ordered to sentenced him for 25 year on the charge of murder is rival, He also evade it but it was not for long. He got arrested on 30 January 2012 while he was on his way to the hospital regarding that he has lung cancer. He was not in prison for long, in 2017 he got released for the condition of his health and later died in the same year.
That the end of his notorious life, even though he is long gone, but his family are still a prominent figure in both local and national politics, Only time will tell how long they will last with wind of chage in Thailand Political land scape and Society.
Reference:
https://www.pptvhd36.com/news/%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%94%E0%B9%87%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%99/104976
https://www.thaipbs.or.th/news/content/280971
https://www.bbc.com/thai/48666064
Somchai Khunplome, ‘Godfather of Chon Buri’, dies at 82 (bangkokpost.com)
Famous Thai 'godfather' surrenders — UPI Archives
Chon Buri ‘godfather’ Kamnan Poh succumbs to cancer (nationthailand.com)
ASIANOW — Asiaweek (cnn.com)
