Sukavich Rangsitpol ( th, สุขวิช รังสิตพล ; born 5 December 1935) is a Thai education reformer, senator, business executive and politician. He served as

deputy prime minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

(1994, 1996–97) and minister of education (1995–97) of Thailand. In 1995, as minister of education, Rangsitpol laid out his plan for education reform in Thailand to realize the potential of Thai people by developing themselves for a better quality of life and to develop the nation for a peaceful co-existence in the global community. The reform was a landmark movement after nearly 100 years of education under the present system.

Life and career

Rangsitpol completed a bachelor's degree in political science at

Thammasat University Thammasat University ( Abrv: TU th, มธ.; th, มหาวิทยาลัยธรรมศาสตร์, , ) is a public research university in Thailand with campuses in Tha Phra Chan area of Phra Nakhon District near the Grand Pala ...

in 1960 and the Management Development Program of

Asian Institute of Management The Asian Institute of Management (AIM) is an international management school and research institution. It is one of the few business schools in Asia to be internationally accredited with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Busine ...

, Manila in 1976. He started working as a sales representative for

Caltex Caltex is a petroleum brand name of Chevron Corporation used in the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East, and Southern Africa. It is also the brand name of non-Chevron petroleum companies in some countries (such as New Zealand, and previously A ...

Oil Thailand in 1961, being promoted to sales supervisor, district manager, general sales manager and general manager over the following decades. He finally served as chairman and managing director of that company during the early 1990s. Rangsitpol was Senator in 1987, National Legislative Assembly in 1991, and Senator Thai Senate in 1992. Between 1993 and 1994 he was the governor of the Expressway and Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (ETA). In 1994, Rangsitpol joined the

New Aspiration Party The New Aspiration Party (''Phak Khwam Wang Mai th, พรรคความหวังใหม่'') is a political party in Thailand. The party was established in 1990 by General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh after his retirement as Commander-In-Chie ...

(NAP) of retired general

Chavalit Yongchaiyudh Chavalit Yongchaiyudh ( th, ชวลิต ยงใจยุทธ, , ; born 15 May 1932), also known as "Big Jiew" (, , ), is a Thai politician and retired army officer. From 1986 to 1990 he was the Commander-in-chief of the Royal Thai Arm ...

and was appointed deputy prime minister in

Chuan Leekpai Chuan Leekpai ( th, ชวน หลีกภัย, , ; ; born 28 July 1938) is a Thai politician who is the current President of the National Assembly of Thailand as well as the incumbent Speaker of the Thai House of Representatives. Previous ...

's cabinet in October of the same year. Together with

Chamlong Srimuang Chamlong Srimuang ( th, จำลอง ศรีเมือง; born 5 July 1935) is a Thai activist and former politician. A former general, he was a leader of the "Young Turks" military clique, founded and led the Palang Dharma Party, ser ...

and transport minister Vichit Surapongchai he formed a team to tackle Bangkok's traffic problems. However, he lost that position after a few weeks. Sukavich was appointed minister of education in

Banharn Silpa-archa Banharn Silpa-archa (also spelled ''Banhan'', ''Silapa''-, ''Sinlapa''-, -''acha''; th, บรรหาร ศิลปอาชา, , ; ; 19 August 1932 – 23 April 2016) was a Thai politician. He was the Prime Minister of Thailand from 1995 ...

's cabinet in July 1995. In addition, he was the secretary-general of the NAP from 1995 to 1997. He was alleged to have contributed 100 million baht to the party's campaign fund. Rangsitpol as Minister of Education launched a series of education reforms in 1995. The aim was to enhance the quality of education from 1995 to achieve educational excellence by 2007. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1996, representing Bangkok's 13th constituency. After New Aspiration's electoral victory, Sukavich again was a deputy prime minister in Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's cabinet in addition to his post as Minister of Education. Moreover, he served as

Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization The Southeast Asia Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) is an intergovernmental organization of the eleven Southeast Asian countries, which was formed on 30 November 1965 by the Kingdom of Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailan ...

(SEAMEO) Rangsitpol also lost the deputy premiership in November 1997 when Chavalit was ousted by a no-confidence vote during the

Asian financial crisis The Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis that gripped much of East Asia and Southeast Asia beginning in July 1997 and raised fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion. However, the recovery in 1998– ...

. After the election in 2001,

Thaksin Shinawatra Thaksin Shinawatra ( th, ทักษิณ ชินวัตร; ; ; Chinese: 丘達新; cnr, Taksin Šinavatra; born 26 July 1949), is a Thai businessman, politician and visiting professor. He served in the Thai Police from 1973 to 1987, ...

the leader of

Thai Rak Thai Party The Thai Rak Thai Party (TRT; th, พรรคไทยรักไทย, , ; "Thais Love Thais Party") was a Thai political party founded in 1998. From 2001 to 2006, it was the ruling party under its founder, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawat ...

, became prime minister. The

has joined the government. Shortly thereafter. The

was merged with the Thai Rak Thai Party. Mostly to join Thai Rak Thai party (the governing party) with Gen. Chavalit Yongchaiyudh except

Chalerm Yubamrung Chalerm Yubamrung ( th, เฉลิม อยู่บำรุง, , ) (born 10 June 1947), is a Thai politician. He was a Member of Parliament representing the Pheu Thai Party, and was one of the Deputy Prime Ministers of Yingluck Shinawa ...

who return to be the Leader of the Mass Party Chingchai Mongkoltham decided to continue the

and Lieutenant Colonel

Thita Rangsitpol Manitkul Theta (, ; uppercase: Θ or ; lowercase: θ or ; grc, ''thē̂ta'' ; Modern: ''thī́ta'' ) is the eighth letter of the Greek alphabet, derived from the Phoenician letter Teth . In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 9. G ...

, WRTA Member of the Parliament and Deputy Secretary of the party. Offset to the Democrats. (Opposition Party) remains the only MPs moving from the opposition party government. During her tenure as a member of the House of Representatives. In 2005, he was re-elected once again, this time a representative of the TRT party list. As one of 111 executive members of the TRT, he was banned from political activities for five years after the 2006 coup d'état. He expressed no wish to return to politics after the ban expired.

Awards and recognitions

# 1995 Thailand Education Reform # 1996 "During his trip to the Philippines, H.E. Mr Sukavich Rangsitpol was conferred an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Education by the Philippine Normal University. His will to reform education and strong leadership in educational management were highly commended." # 1997 ACEID awards for excellence in education # 1998 Educational innovation and informationhttps://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000141834

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rangsitpol, Sukavich 1935 births Living people Chevron Corporation people Sukavich Rangsitpol Sukavich Rangsitpol Sukavich Rangsitpol Sukavich Rangsitpol Sukavich Rangsitpol Sukavich Rangsitpol Sukavich Rangsitpol