The political cost of a natural disaster

ANALYSIS: The govt faces mounting pressure as critics savage its flood response efforts

The Yingluck Shinawatra government is falling out of public favour because of its handling of the country's flood crisis.

The government was sworn into office in early August, unaware that the first major test of its resoluteness was already creeping up on it _ the worst disaster in 50 years.

The cabinet seats were barely warm when a vast ocean of water built up in the northern provinces and began a steady march on central Bangkok, ravaging all provinces from the North to the Central Plains along the way and bringing death and destruction on a scale no one could conceive of.

Today, with the disaster far from over, the government is already counting the cost not just of the damage and clean up, but the effect on its standing among the population. Its declining popularity is reflected in a recent Suan Dusit poll in which 46.9% of respondents said it had failed its first test and was ill-prepared.

Like the districts still untouched, the pressure is bearing down on Ms Yingluck from all sides.

In hindsight, she had ample time in early August to brainstorm ideas from experts to mitigate the impact of floods in the North and the Central Plains and deal with the threat to the capital.

In reality, little could be done for many of the provinces north of Bangkok, such was the extent of the deluge. Yet she and her cabinet cannot avoid responsibility for the catastrophe.

Their responses is perceived as tardy and lacking an offensive approach.

By the time floodwater began to swamp Ayutthaya, the sense of urgency to protect Bangkok needed no elucidating _ it was real.

But flood prevention lines were built belatedly and additional water pumps procured only after the situation turned critical.

Flood management and relief efforts have been rendered ineffective by a lack of coordination among state agencies and politicians engaging in finger-pointing and the blame game.

Sombat Thamrongthanyawong, rector of the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida), said crises always prove a government's worth, and if it can keep damage to a minimum it can win the recognition of the public.

Mr Sombat said that since the flood disaster began, the government has been defeated on every front.

Even though the crisis has been hard to predict, the onus is on the government to gather input from professionals and experts, not amateurs, to ensure accurate data and come up with the right solutions, Mr Sombat said.

He stressed it is important to put the right man in the right job and not deal with problems as they crop up.

He noted the Interior Ministry, which has the largest number of personnel and vast amounts of manpower at every level of government across the country, was not put in charge of flood relief. Instead, the job was offered to the Justice Ministry, which Mr Sombat says is not suited to the task.

But Ms Yingluck has an ally in Bangkok Senator Rosana Tositrakul, who has voiced her disagreement with calls for the PM's resignation.

She urged the government to focus on tackling the floods rather than trying to thwart political side-issues.

Ms Rosana said Ms Yingluck cannot not be held responsible alone, rather all those involved in flood management should take collective responsibility, and if anyone is to be replaced, then they all should be replaced.