...if there is any leader, (whether figure head or head of state) I have yet to see a present day leader like the current Thai King.
This King is loved by his people NOT because they HAVE TO, but because they WANT TO.
His Majesty has devoted his life in ACTIVELY helping his NEEDY constituents. Using his western education, he traveled a lot to rural areas, checked out what are indigenously in need of that particular place, then set up his royal projects (much of them were HIS ideas not his Royal Engineers) to make these places self-sufficient.
This man is a man of action and leaves much of the "politicking" to the traditional politicians.
The King has no official say when it comes to government policies although he can make a profound influence.
I'm not Thai, but the little that I know of about their history (maybe fable among others can input on this) is that sometime in the 90's, Thailand was ruled by the military and apparently the people were not happy with it and a civil war erupted.
The King could not stand the unnecessary loss of Thai lives and he called upon both sides to meet him at his palace.
After listening to the King, both sides stopped fighting and a peaceful nation came to be once more.
Such was his influence, respect and love that he has from his people... unfortunately such is not the same when it comes to his heir, the Prince.