Two government agencies oversaw telecommunications-the Communications Authority of Thailand (CAT) and the Telephone organization of Thailand ToT During the years of military rule, generals occupied the heads of these and most other state agencies, and continued to defend their place in TOT and CAT into the 1980s on grounds that communications were a matter of national security. Both agencies reported to the Ministry of Transport and Communications. With its large budget for sophisticated equipment and infrastructure projects, the ministry had a reputation for corruption and was rated among the three most corrupt agencies in opinion surveys. Until the early 1980s, the ministership was also usually captured by military figures," but from 1983 under "semidemocracy," elected politicians took the post. Originally CAT looked after external matters and TOT er internal matters, but the division was never precise and became more blurred with changes in technology. The competition between these bodies opportunities for both politicians and businessmen. created Meanwhile, the changing political background made telecoms a focus of negotiation between bureaucrats (civilian and military) elected politicians, and businessmen.