- Lek Nana
Lek Nana (เล็ก นานา in Thai; born c. 1936"New Thai Minister of Science, Technology and Energy appointed", "
Xinhua News Agency ", 29 August 1985] ) is a Thai businessman and politician. He served as Deputy Foreign Minister and as Minister of Science, Technology and Energy. Active in the Democrat Party, he served as its secretary general and repeatedly on its executive committee. As aMuslim , he was also a senior member of the Central Islamic Committee of Thailand.From 1975 to 1976 he was Deputy Foreign Minister under Prime Minister
Seni Pramoj .He served as a honorary consul-general for
Iraq in Thailand until 1981. A powerful bomb exploded in his office building in Bangkok's Chinatown in December 1982, killing a police bomb disposal expert, injuring 20 people, and causing a fire affecting five buildings. Lek was not in the office at the time. ["Thai bomb disposal expert killed in blast", "United Press International ", ] The office was used for an Iraq export business and had formerly been the Iraqi consulate; a connection to theIran-Iraq war was conjectured at the time. ["The Associated Press ", 2 December 1982]In 1982 he became secretary general of the Democrat Party under party leader
Bhichai Rattakul . ["Sixth leader in the party's 57-yr history", "The Nation ", 20 April 2003]In 1985, Prime Minister
Prem Tinsulanonda appointed Lek Nana as minister for science and technology after the previous minister,Damrong Latthapipat , had committed suicide, reportedly discontended with the inadequate attention that his field had received.Lek Nana owned property in
Bangkok alongSukhumvit Road Soi 3 and 4, and that area is now known as "Soi Nana", also giving rise to the name "Nana" for the nearby Skytrain station, the "Nana Hotel" and the "Nana Plaza " entertainment complex there. He also donated land for the headquarters of the Democrat Party, for thePrincess Mother Memorial Park , and for a hospital. [ [http://www.theprincessmothermemorialpark.org/system_th/readarticle.php?article_id=1 Princess Mother Memorial Park] , accessed 7 August 2007 th icon]References
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