It has been argued that former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra (74), who returned from exile for 15 years on corruption charges, wore a super expensive wristwatch while returning home, but switched to a mid-priced brand watch when meeting supporters. According to local media such as Thai PBS
on the 22nd (local time), Thaksin arrived at Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport안전놀이터 at 9 am on a private plane. The news of his return drew the attention of local netizens. In particular, netizens paid attention to the watch he wore. X (old Twitter) user and political analyst ML Natacon Devakula claimed, “If I’m not mistaken, Thaksin’s watch is a Patek Philippe Grandmaster chime.”
With a history of 180 years, Patek Philippe is one of the top 5 luxury Swiss watch brands in the world. The model worn by former Prime Minister Thaksin Thaksin was estimated to be ‘Grand Master Chime Reference 6300G’. When the Grandmaster Chime series was launched in 2016, the sale price reached a whopping 2.2 million dollars (approximately 2.97 billion won).
However, when the former Prime Minister Thaksin arrived at Don Muang VIP Airport and greeted supporters, a video showed him wearing a different type of watch. At this time, the watch he wore was presumed to be the ‘Mission to Mars’, a model created by Omega and Swatch. The selling price of this watch is about 330,000 won. Some interpret it as a move to secure support from the common people.
Meanwhile, Thaksin, a former telecommunications conglomerate, became prime minister in the 2001 general election, and succeeded in reappointing his term by winning a landslide victory in the 2005 general election. After taking power, he gained support from the people by carrying out policies such as reforming the hospital treatment system and reducing farmers’ debts.
However, he was overthrown in a military coup in 2006 and fled abroad in 2008 while on trial for corruption. Thaksin is known to have lived in Dubai, United Arab Emirates ( UAE ) and London, England, for the past 15 years.