Opposition leader Move Forward has selected a political novice over a two-time MP from a powerful local dynasty to contest next year’s election for chief of Chiang Mai’s Provincial Administrative Organization (PAO).

Pun-Arj Chairatana, former executive director of the National Innovation Agency (NIA), was recently endorsed by the party’s executive board in a unanimous decision.

He was favored over two-time ex-MP Tassanee Buranupakorn, who quit the ruling Pheu Thai Party after it withdrew from a Move Forward-led alliance and formed a coalition with pro-military parties from the previous government.

In choosing Pun-Arj, Move Forward was prioritizing the development of Chiang Mai and its people over securing political power in the city, said Nataphol Tovichakchaikul, a Move Forward MP for Chiang Mai and a member of the selection committee.

“If Move Forward had wanted to boost its chance of winning, we would have chosen [Tassanee] undoubtedly,” he posted on Facebook last Tuesday.

Tassanee’s family had long dominated Chiang Mai politics as allies of the Shinawatras before Move Forward arrived on the scene. Her uncles include Boonlert, a former PAO chief of the city; Prapan, a former senator; and Pakorn, an ex-MP for Chiang Mai.

Boonlert narrowly lost the previous PAO election in 2020 to Pheu Thai’s Pichai Lertpong-adisorn, whose four-year term ends in December.

An even fiercer fight is expected at the PAO election early next year after Move Forward replaced Pheu Thai as the most popular party in Chiang Mai.

In last year’s general election, Move Forward won seven of the 10 MP seats up for grabs in the northern city, compared with two for Pheu Thai, and one for Palang Pracharath.

Big plans for home province

Pun-Arj, 51, explained he accepted Move Forward’s offer without hesitation, having long had an interest in running the PAO in his native city.

He added that his interest in local politics began long before he became the NIA’s executive director in 2015.

The NIA is a public organization under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation.

“Although I am a political newcomer, I learned about politics over more than a decade while I was in the bureaucracy. I am a Chiang Mai native, and I want to see my home province develop,” Pun-Arj said after receiving the party’s endorsement.

PM2.5 dust pollution and flooding were not the only problems in Chiang Mai, he said. He pointed to a shortage of new investment, adding that the city needs to invest more money in innovations to boost its development.

The urgent priority was to tackle dust pollution and wildfires, he said. But the city’s PAO also needs to address other issues that are hampering development.

“We must stimulate tourism and ensure our economy is sustainable,” he said.

Pun-Arj pointed to what he said was a general misperception that large development projects could only be initiated by the central government in Bangkok.

“In fact, local administrative agencies like PAOs have the ability to conduct such projects,” he said.

Impressive experience

Born in Chiang Mai on November 7, 1972, Pun-Arj completed his secondary education at Montfort College, a prestigious all-boys Catholic school in the province, before obtaining a bachelor’s degree in physics from Chiang Mai University in 1995 and taking a course in the political economics of innovation at Linköping University in Sweden the same year.

In 1997, he received a master’s in technology and innovation management from the University of Sussex in the UK. In 2006, he earned a doctorate in the economics of innovation from Denmark’s Aalborg University.

His CV comprises a long list of work experience and responsibilities. He has worked as an adviser to various institutions, including Chulalongkorn University, the Sasin Graduate Institute of Business Administration, Krung Thai Bank, sugar producer Mitr Phol, the National Food Institute, Defense Technology Institute, and the National Economic and Social Development Council.

He has also sat on several government and parliamentary committees. After serving at the NIA’s helm for two terms, Pun-Arj stepped down last year.

He is credited with building the Startup Thailand ecosystem, raising public awareness of the need to promote business startups, and opening up Thailand to startups from around the world. After leaving the NIA, he has continued working to promote new startups in Thailand.

By Thai PBS World’s Political Desk