Minister fails to sign Games sponsorship

Minister fails to sign Games sponsorship

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP): Thailand's education minister failed to show up to sign a major sponsorship contract for the 1998 Asian Games, but the company on Friday said it hoped to wrap up the deal next week.

Sukhavich Rangsitpol's no-show for the meeting with Acer Group of Taiwan angered Santiparb Tejavanija, the games marketing director, so much that he resigned.

But Santiparb decided to stay on in his post after president of the Olympic Council of Asia, Shiek Ahmad al-Sahah al-Fahd of Kuwait, appealed to Santiparb to reconsider, saying his efforts were crucial to the success of the Games.

Acer Chairman Stan Shih and other dignitaries were left waiting and perplexed at a Bangkok convention hall when Sukhavich didn't show up at the meeting Thursday morning.

An aide to Sukhavich said the minister did not attend the meeting because a clause detailing what type of software would be supplied by the company was missing from the contract. He offered no other explanation for the minister's behavior.

Acer will provide the computer systems and software necessary for official scoring and medal tallies at the Olympic-style games.

The incident was the latest in Bangkok's bumbling attempts to stage the Games, scheduled for next December.

The Olympic Council of Asia has threatened on several occasions to shift the games to another country because of poor preparations and a lackadaisical attitude from Thai government officials.

The Thai government hopes the event will showcase Bangkok as a modern, developed city, but critics have said it is more likely to spotlight the capital's many problems, including massive traffic jams and pollution.