The most controversial issue about the new PM, in my view, is the fact that he avoided compulsory military service and his attempt to correct it involves the faking of the evidence.

English-born, Eton and Oxford-educated, Abhisit is one of the many Thai elites and middleclasses who can afford to get around serving in the military. Here are the FACTS:

- Abhisit did not report himself when he needed to for military draft process in 1987. Thus, he did not have the document called Sor Dor 43 which indicates that a person has gone through the conscription process (whether or not he is recruited).

- Later on he tried to fix this by applying for a teaching position at the Military Academy. He attempted to resign from that position after just 35 days, clearly showing his intention of not wanting to serve in the military but just wanting to get around the military service.

- The above application process, however, was ruled illegal. To be eligible to join the Military Academy, a person older than 21 must have a Sor Dor 43. For some reason, Abhisit was admitted to the teaching position based on a faked Sor Dor 43. The application process was thus illegal and the military officers involved in the application process have already been punished.

- Thus, Abhisit dodged the military draft and illegally became a lecturer at the Military Academy for very short period of time just to fix the fact that he missed the draft.

I assume this case is too old to be legally active. I would also acknowledge that many other Thais get around military service using similar means.

But for a PM - with whom we should expect higher moral standards - I think this is unacceptable. Military drafting is an important process that every man, according to the rule of law, must go through. Abhisit's avoidance of military service may be a mistake in the past, but it will come and haunt him forever.

One might say: if he has to choose between Thaksin and a military draft dodger, he would go for the latter. My point is not about choosing between the two though. It's about principles and values.