BANGKOK – The Election Commission red-carded famous celebrities Pankun and James yesterday after evidence surfaced that the monkey and dog pair had handed out free VCDs of their acclaimed show on the campaign trail.
Running under the Pua Paendin banner in Chaiyaphum constituency 2, which includes Mueang, Khon Sawan and Kaeng Khro, the pair easily outpaced rivals in the People Power Party (PPP) and Chat Thai party with a record 101,290 votes. The second-nearest candidate won 50,210.
The bestial candidates were dismayed by the panel’s decision.
James stared into the distance with a smug look on his face, while the more eccentric Pankun stormed around in circles flailing his arms in the air until sitting down on the sidewalk dejected, putting his head in his hands.
Although making a name for themselves in Japan on NTV’s “Tensai! Shimura Doubutsu-en” (“Genius! Shimura Zoo”) and the TBS program “Doubutsu Kisou Tengai!” (Unbelievable Animals), the comedic chimpanzee-and-bulldog pair quickly captured the hearts of the Thai public through performing menial tasks like buying groceries, planting rice fields and catching insects.
In a bid to shore up its flailing popularity, in March the military-appointed government awarded Pankun and James honorary Thai citizenship, the first time such an honor has been given to foreign animals.
At a dinner party a month later, fellow actress Janista Liewchalermwong, better known as Bam, convinced the pair to join Pua Paendin and run in the upcoming election.
“James was skeptical at first, like always, but Pankun couldn’t hide his excitement and started nodding his head yes and jumping around the room,” Bam said in an interview back in July.
The pair were a hit on the campaign trail, attracting thousands of people. Pankun was officially standing as a candidate, but it was implicit that James would be his top adviser.
“Pankun is more outgoing, while James is the brains behind the operation,” said Mechai Chatwatvivat, the pair’s top political adviser. “From the reaction we got, it was clear they had struck a chord with the electorate and were ready to lead the country into a new era of democracy.”
Critics said Pankun’s policies were unclear and the pair would sidestep major questions. At one debate, Pankun delivered one of the Campaign 2007’s more defining moments when he threw a glass of water on PPP candidate Chilada Kompansas, pulled down his pants and then climbed up a wall and started swinging from lamppost to lamppost—leading to a standing ovation from onlookers.
“At that point, I knew we weren’t going to win,” Chilada said.
In a statement released by Mechai, Pankun and James called the red card “the politics of animal destruction” but said they might “take a break” from politics for the near future.
James is working on a novel and Pankun has several movie projects in the works, including a biting satire of a coup leader that many suspect is based on General Sonthi Boonyaratglin.
“These two may say they are done with politics, but nobody is taking them seriously,” said Suriyasai Katasila, a spokesman for the People’s Alliance for Democracy, which had previously announced it would protest against Pankun and James if it ran out of things to protest.
