A failure to communicate
published : 17 Jul 2021 at 04:00
8
In a time when society needs unity to overcome the pandemic, it's dispiriting to see the Governmental Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) filing a libel lawsuit against Thonburi Healthcare Group (THG) chairman Boon Vanasin, who recently voiced his frustration about the slow pace of vaccine imports, a reaction related to his group's vaccine procurement having to go through state agencies.
While the GPO is entitled to defend its integrity, the agency needs to appreciate that the issue stems from its failure to keep society well informed about the country's vaccination procurement plan.
Instead of working to get their message across, the GPO has behaved in an autocratic manner by resorting to a lawsuit -- a bid deemed by some as a gag tactic. After all, a media-savvy government would focus on informing and communicating with the public to win hearts and minds while an authoritarian state would use and bend laws to silence critics.