Page 31 - ELITE PLUS MAGAZINE VOL 12

Bangkok and the economy for years, and the coup d’etat dampened investment.Yet Thailand’s macroeconomics and stability in terms of monetary policy got good reviews from international agencies. The respected International Institute for Management Development still gives a good rating for Thailand’s macroeconomic stability, thanks to the BoT’s firm hand.Mr Prasarn’s unorthodox view on how to run the BoT comes from his eclectic interests and his passion to serve the public. A top student from prestigious, all-boy Assumption College, young Prasarn defied the stereotype of the nerd by also being involving in many activities, especially community service. He credits his teachers and Catholic priests at Assumption College for his passion for community service. “I was lucky. I had friends and teachers who helped expand my world view and look at the world around me, not only read textbooks.”At Chulalongkorn University, he was president of the Council of Students and very active politically. He was also one of the October Men, students who joined protests against the military government. During the protests of October 1973, Mr Prasarn helped negotiate with Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn to release 13 students.As many students fled into the jungle, he chose to continue his education overseas at Harvard University. He briefly worked as economic researcher in Washington DC before returning to Thailand to start his career at the BoT in 1983. He then moved to the Securities and Exchange Commission for seven years. He took a plunge into private commercial banks as president of Kasikorn Bank before succeeding Tarisa Watanagase as 22nd governor of the BoT in October 2010.Since his retirement, he serves as president of the State Enterprise Policy Commission, also known as the “Superboard”, to oversee state enterprises listed on the stock exchange.The secret to his work is beautiful in its simplicity – to lead a meaningful and useful life. In the final “Letter to Ajarn Puey” column, he wrote: “Before I end this letter I need to confess to you that I applied for the job as BoT governor because I wanted to do work that was useful to society. During five years as BoT governor, I felt alive, energetic, like on a return to the battlefield. The challenges invigorated me, and I can feel that I have lived a meaningful life.”