Lek Nana (; 1924–1 April 2010) was a Thai businessman and politician. He was one of the founders of Thailand's Democrat Party at the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Lek Nana served as Deputy Foreign Minister as well as Minister of Science, Technology, and Energy."New Thai Minister of Science, Technology, and Energy appointed",

Xinhua News Agency Xinhua News Agency (English pronunciation: ),J. C. Wells: Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, 3rd ed., for both British and American English or New China News Agency, is the official state news agency of the People's Republic of China. It is a ...

, 29 August 1985 A

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

of Gujarati ancestry, he was a senior member of the Central Islamic Committee of Thailand. The Nana area on

Sukhumvit Road Sukhumvit Road (, , ), or Highway 3 (), is a major road in Thailand, and a major surface road of Bangkok and other cities. It follows a coastal route from Bangkok to Khlong Yai District, Trat border to Koh Kong, Cambodia. Sukhumvit Road ...

derives its name from him.

Career

Nana became Deputy Foreign Minister in 1975 under Prime Minister

Seni Pramoj Mom Rajawongse Seni Pramoj (, , ; 26 May 190528 July 1997) was a Thai professor and politician who served as Prime Minister of Thailand three times. A descendant of the Thai royal family, he was the great-grandson of King Rama II. His final two ...

, losing his office in the military coup that followed the October 1976 massacre of leftist protesters at

Thammasat University Thammasat University (TU; ; , ) is a public university, public research university in Thailand with campuses in the Tha Phra Chan area of Bangkok, Rangsit, Pattaya and Lampang Province. , Thammasat University has over 39,000 students enrolled in ...

. He served as an honorary consul-general for

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

in Thailand until 1981. In December 1982, a powerful bomb exploded in his office building in Bangkok's Chinatown, killing a police bomb disposal expert, injuring 20 other people, and causing a fire that damaged five buildings. Nana was not in the office at the time. His office had formerly been the Iraqi consulate, and a connection to the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...

was suspected to have been the reason. In 1982 Nana became secretary general of the Democrat Party under party leader

Bhichai Rattakul Bhichai Rattakul (, , ; 16 September 1924 – 28 February 2022) was a Thai politician who served as the deputy prime minister from 1983 to 1990 and 1997 to 2000, speaker of the House of Representatives, and president of the National Assembly. He ...

. He also served on the party's executive board repeatedly. In 1985, Prime Minister

Prem Tinsulanonda Prem Tinsulanonda (, , ; 26 August 1920 – 26 May 2019) was a Thai military officer, politician, and statesman who served as the Prime Minister of Thailand from 1980 to 1988. During Prem’s tenure as prime minister, he was credited with end ...

appointed Nana as Minister for Science and Technology, following the suicide of the previous minister, Damrong Latthapipat, said to have been displeased by the inadequate funding he had received.

Legacy

Nana was nicknamed the "landlord of Bangkok" and owned a great deal of property along Bangkok's

, especially in the area now known as " Soi Nana" (Sukhumvit Soi 3 and Sukhumvit Soi 4). The name Nana is also used for the nearby Skytrain station, the Nana Hotel and the

Nana Plaza Nana Plaza (formerly Nana Entertainment Plaza) is an entertainment complex and red-light district in Bangkok, Thailand. Originally built as a shopping center, Nana Plaza occupies a three-story commercial building in the Khlong Toei District of Ban ...

entertainment complex. A philanthropist, Nana donated land for the headquarters of the Democrat Party, for the Princess Mother Memorial Park, and for a hospital.Princess Mother Memorial Park
. Retrieved 7 August 2007

Death

Lek Nana died of a heart attack in a Bangkok hospital in 2010 at the age of 85. He was buried at Ban Somdej Mosque in

Thonburi __NOTOC__ Thonburi () is an area of modern Bangkok. During the era of the Ayutthaya Kingdom, Kingdom of Ayutthaya, its location on the right (west) bank at the mouth of the Chao Phraya River had made it an important garrison town, which is ref ...

, with royal representation from HM King

Bhumibol Adulyadej Bhumibol Adulyadej (5 December 192713 October 2016), titled Rama IX, was King of Thailand from 1946 until Death and funeral of Bhumibol Adulyadej, his death in 2016. His reign of 70 years and 126 days is the longest of any List of Thai mo ...

References

Bibliography

* Dubey, Tung Nath, ''India and Thailand: A Brief History'', H.K. Publishers and Distributors, 1990 {{DEFAULTSORT:Nana, Lek 1924 births Lek Nana 2010 deaths Lek Nana Lek Nana Lek Nana Lek Nana Lek Nana Lek Nana Lek Nana