Photos: Meet The New King Of Thailand Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn - Crop-Tops, Mistresses And Flying Poodles And Why People Are Unhappy About It?
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Thailand is set to crown a new monarch this month after King Bhumibol
Adulyadej’s death ended his 70-year reign – but the former ruler’s only
son and heir, Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, is not popular with
everyone.
In fact he is known more for his eclectic dress sense, scandal-plagued past and failed marriages than any regal qualities.
The 64-year-old Crown Prince was pictured at Munich airport earlier this
year wearing a small white crop-top, faded slim-fit jeans and a fake
tattoo sleeve.
And
he has already asked to delay becoming king, raising fears of deepening
instability in Thailand after the death of his much-loved father.
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Who is the king-in-waiting?
Born in 1952 in Bangkok’s Royal Palace, Prince Maha was educated in the
UK at King’s Mead School and Millfield School before attending
Australia’s Royal Military College. He spent much of his working life
training with armed forces in Britain and the US, winning an array of
military titles and a pilot’s license after developing a love of
aviation.
He rushed home from Germany – where he spends much of his time,
reportedly with a former Thai Airways air hostess who he is planning to
marry – when his father’s health deteriorated and has since requested to
delay taking to the throne so, he says, he has more time to mourn.
Experts believe this could deepen a period of instability in Thailand
that has included two coups, anti-government protests and a bloody fight
for secession by Muslim separatists in the country’s southern
provinces.
The crown prince is seen to lack the public popularity that gave his
father's rule legitimacy, raising fears of a power struggle in the
south-east Asian country.
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| The Crown Prince has not inherited his father’s popularity among people in Thailand Getty |
Why is he so controversial?
It is Prince Maha’s “playboy” personal life that has attracted most
attention. He is famous for his dedication to his pet poodle, Foo Foo,
which was awarded the rank of Air Chief Marshal in the Royal Thai Air
Force and given its own Wikipedia page.
It has frequently appeared at official functions; including accompanying
the Crown Prince to a 2007 reception hosted in his honour by the US
Ambassador Ralph Boyce.
Mr Boyce allegedly recounted the event in a leaked cable, writing: “Foo
Foo was present at the event, dressed in formal evening attire complete
with paw mitts, and at one point during the band’s second number, he
jumped up on to the head table and began lapping from the guests’ water
glasses, including my own.
“The Air Chief Marshal’s antics drew the full attention of the 600-plus
audience members, and remains the talk of the town to this day.”
When the dog died last year, it was given a four-day funeral complete
with Buddhist rites before being cremated in an extravagant ceremony.
It can't be true! @Thailand Crown Prince's dog FooFoo, officially an air chief marshall, is dead? HT @zenjournalistpic.twitter.com/2toWMjK6e0
Foo Foo and its owner hit the headlines in 2014 when opponents of the
Crown Prince leaked a video showing his third wife, Princess Srirasm,
lying on the floor feeding the dog cake while wearing nothing but a
G-string.
The footage prompted a national scandal in Thailand and attracted news coverage across the world.
How do people feel about him becoming king?
The leaking of the tape marked the eruption of below-the-surface tensions among the country’s elite as to who should succeed King Bhumibol.
Some
would prefer the Crown Prince’s younger sister, Princess Maha Chakri
Sirindhorn, to take the throne but Thai law forbids a female monarch.
A diplomatic cable from 2010, released by Wikileaks, reported members of
Thailand’s political elite expressing hopes that the King would
override the laws in order to appoint the Princess as his heir.
They highlighted Prince Maha’s alleged record of meddling in politics
and “embarrassing financial transactions”. The cable records officials
saying the Crown Prince “could not stop either, nor would he be able, at
age 57, to rectify his behaviour”.
What about his family?
Prince Maha has been married three times. His first – to his cousin –
reportedly included him fathering five children with a mistress, who he
then married instead.
The second wife left the country when the relationship ended.
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