FOCUS ON SERVICE TO SOCIETY
Dr Sippanondha Ketudat
by Anand Panyarachun
(excerpt from the memorial book)

The late Prof Dr Sippanondha Ketudat was recognized as an able intellectual, highly respected by his peers and all of Thai society for his straightforward ways, his incorruptibility, and his integrity.

His modesty, calm disposition and positive outlook have earned him his reputation as a real gentleman in all senses of the word.

Whilst I was in the Anand 1 government, the economy was in crisis. For me the first challenge was to form a Cabinet, and particularly, who should be invited to take charge of the economic portfolios?

From all of those able individuals whom I had in mind, I selected Prof Sippanondha as Minister of Industry, which to some came as quite a surprise. Although his background and professional expertise lay in education, Prof Sippanondha’s honesty, his straightforward manner, his loyalty, and the support he commanded especially within the petrochemical sector, made him an eminently suitable person to oversee the industrial sector.

Prof Sippanondha shouldered a heavy responsibility at the Ministry of Industry, which he discharged with his typical zeal. Under his able stewardship, his team played an invaluable role in both policy planning and implementation, always staying loyal to overall government policies. I was confident in Prof Sippanondha’s leadership and was delighted that the Ministry of Industry was most certainly now in capable, reliable and honest hands.

Given Prof Sippanondh’s many abilities and his wonderful personality, when the time came I therefore was honoured to have a second opportunity to invite Prof Sippanondh to join my Anand 2 government. And even after washing my hands of politics, Prof Sippanondh and I continued to work closely together in several diverse institutional settings- at the Kenan Institute (Asia), at the Thailand Development and Research Institute, and at the Thai Environment Institute.

Although, sadly, Prof Sippanondha has now left us, he will be fondly remembered by all who knew him. He deserves our praise and should be imprinted in our minds as a man who has sacrificed himself for the nation without ever thinking of personal benefit.

His life is truly a fine example to us all. I hope that he will be remembered by future generations as a venerable person who served his country with his whole being. •