Veteran bureaucrat ready to lead Commerce Ministry
On his final day at the ministry, hundreds of officials from various departments gathered to bid farewell to the long-serving technocrat.
Many held flowers and garlands, offering their best wishes as Mr Jatuporn departed the ministry compound. They shouted 'We love you' while marine‑patrol officers formed an impromptu honour guard as his car left.
Mr Jatuporn, 60, told reporters he felt no pressure in switching to another ministry because 'everything I have done is for the people's benefit'.
His immediate priority, he said, is to tackle depressed crop prices, beginning with a field visit to Nakhon Si Thammarat province tomorrow to address the rock‑bottom prices of local fruit.
'We cannot lose more time,' he said. 'The work must move quickly and correctly.'
Appointed permanent secretary for natural resources in 2019, Mr Jatuporn previously headed almost every key agency under the ministry, including the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP), the Royal Forest Department, the Department of Water Resources and the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR).
Though his civil service term was due to end in October, he opted to resign early to enter politics with the fledgling New Opportunity Party, stunning pundits when he vaulted straight into a Grade‑A cabinet post under the administration of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who was suspended from duty this week.
Analysts note the party's rumoured ties to a major energy conglomerate, although it currently holds no parliamentary seats.
New Opportunity is led by Deputy Commerce Minister Suchart Chomklin, who claims to have the support of about 20 MPs of the 36-MP United Thai Nation party, with which he has been at odds for some time.
Mr Jatuporn holds bachelor's and master's degrees in political science from Chulalongkorn University and another master's in forest and environmental resource management from Kasetsart University.
He has also held positions on the boards of state agencies, including the Forest Industry Organisation, the Highland Research and Development Institute, the Bioeconomy Development Office and the Greenhouse Gas Management Organisation.
In addition, he served as chairman of the corporate governance and sustainability committee at the state majority-owned oil and gas company PTT.
His departure sets off a scramble for succession in the top post at the natural resources ministry.
Four department heads are tipped as contenders for the post: Attapon Charoenchansa of the DNP, Pinsak Suraswadi from the DMCR, Bhadol Thavornkitcharat from the Department of Groundwater Resources, and Phirun Saiyasitpanich from the Department of Climate Change and Environment.
Outsiders, however, point to Raweewan Bhuridej, secretary‑general of the National Land Policy Board and former chief of the environmental planning office, as a dark‑horse candidate.
The cabinet reshuffle marks Mr Jatuporn's formal entry into national politics, with expectations that his bureaucratic experience will play a key role in guiding the Ministry of Commerce through pressing economic challenges.
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