Food budget for prisons runs out mid-year

By PIYANUCH THAMNUKASETCHAI 
THE NATION

 

 

EACH DAY, every inmate of a Thai prison is expected to survive on Bt49 worth of food and cooking gas.

 

That meagre amount appears in the official budget found in the Budget Bureau’s paper.

 

However, that budget is allocated to feed the “average” prison population of 190,200 inmates. In reality that average is often far exceeded by the actual number of prisoners.

 

 

This month, the number of inmates has already soared past 350,000 and they are sharing the same food budget as was intended for 190,200 inmates.

 

As a result prison authorities can spend all of their official annual budget for food in just five months.

 

And the budget of Bt49 per head per day on food and gas for 190,200 prisoners has remained fixed for the past five years, even as the cost of food has increased and the number of prisoners climbed.

 

Certainly, feeding prisoners is a large budget line item, totalling Bt3.3 billion a year. And every Thai shares the burden through paying VAT and other taxes collected by the government.

 

So what do prisoners get to eat in a day, given how small the budget is provided by the government?

 

The menu looks nice enough.

 

 

On a recent day, for example, breakfast featured a bowl of rice prepared alongside chicken soup and sweet potato. For lunch, prisoners received a bowl of boiled rice plus a serving of stir-fried chicken or pork with bean sprouts and bean curd sheets. 

 

And dinner again started with boiled rice, to which was added a sweet chicken curry with pumpkin. 

 

To help tide them over to the next day, they were also given vegetables and spicy dip, fruit or dessert at dinner.

 

Prison rules require prisoners to return to their sleeping quarters by 3pm. They must finish their last meal of the day before then and wait nearly 15 hours for their next meal.

 

Dishes provided by the government, in spite of the meagre budget, are nutritious enough.

 

But many prisoners find it hard to scrape by with only the state-provided food.

 

If their family can afford it, they may spend up to Bt300 a day on additional food and beverages sold in the prisons.

 

An informed source said the Corrections Department had also tried to feed inmates under its care by buying food on credit terms.

 

“Usually, the annual budget provided lasts for five months only. After that, the Corrections Department will rely on credit terms and try to ask for additional money when the government allocates its mid-year budget,” the source said.

 

The Corrections Department has used e-bidding to source its food supplies.

 

Perhaps surprisingly, successful bidders have offered a food price between 30 and 40 per cent lower than standard prices.

 

 

The auction winners will usually have to give the Corrections Department a long credit term, waiting while the department seeks additional budget funding around the middle of the fiscal year. The actual cost of feeding the prisoners is clearly not being fully addressed from the beginning of the annual budget cycle.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30347403

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-06-11

37 minutes ago, webfact said:

they are sharing the same food budget as was intended for 190,200 inmates.

high financial acumen

I have some serious doubts that the picture shown represents the quantity and quality of an average breakfast in prison. And all that for 16 baht (3 meals for 49 baht)?

And well...we all know what happens to Thai government money as it drips its way down to the 'beneficiaries'.

 

 

Time to start eating gecko tails and roaches.....

Let them eat cake.

I think photo not true.

Prisoner not eat good.

Sounds like they may want to release the non violent types or start a house arrest program. 

Food , no Hab, money gone. 

 

Would be better to put the prison population to work in the government fields.

Chain gang style, growing there food also fixing the roads.

 

1 minute ago, yellowboat said:

Sounds like they may want to release the non violent types or start a house arrest program. 

Or reality TV show where they battle to death and eat each other. 

Just feed them with sticky rice and soya sauce. Waste of taxpayers money. At least they can do some farming to feed themselves.

What a pity for the prisoners that they cannot vote. Otherwise the Junta Party and the PM could give them some additional food money out of the Thai Niyom vote buying slush fund. 

Yes I've posted this before but: 

 

“It is said that no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.”  Nelson Mandela

 

 

let them go full Cannibal..

Been there done that... Buggers didnt give me a t-shirt though.

Buch of lying bar stewards, prison food is nothing like what has been shown... It is garbage only fit for pigs.

Also only 2 meals a day not 3.

51 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

Sounds like they may want to release the non violent types or start a house arrest program. 

How will they control it?

How about allowing all the criminals out every morning begging for alms? No wait!

1 hour ago, flyingtlger said:

Time to start eating gecko tails and roaches.....

Well, another solution could be. All the murderer's Rapist and pedophiles in there they could start eating Rats on Bread Cooked of course. Don't they have a rat problem in Bangkok? You could kill 2 birds here with 1 stone. One solve the problems of Rats in Bangkok the other keep the food within budget 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

If their family can afford it, they may spend up to Bt300 a day on additional food and beverages sold in the prisons.

I wonder how many in the administration have their hands in this pot...

 

I bet the genuine Buddhists in this country would be happy as a clown to practice the teaching of the Buddha and share at least their leftovers with those in need:

      

2 hours ago, Juan B Tong said:

And well...we all know what happens to Thai government money as it drips its way down to the 'beneficiaries'.

 

 

Somewhat akin to the schools food fund. A lot of snouts to feed before it gets to the intended recipients 

I hope that they can spend as much as they want to buy their own food ?

 

 

Porridge.

3 hours ago, shady86 said:

Just feed them with sticky rice and soya sauce. Waste of taxpayers money. At least they can do some farming to feed themselves.

Your compassion & empathy for your fellow humans is admirable ?

I'm sure each and everyone of them was given every opportunity possible, along with a first rate education, to better themselves, take care of their families & become tax paying wage slaves like the rest of us. 

4 hours ago, shady86 said:

Just feed them with sticky rice and soya sauce. Waste of taxpayers money. At least they can do some farming to feed themselves.

Why comment like that?

,

Many people in prison because they should be there.

Many people in prison because they were framed/ set up.

You are making a general comment based on what?

I have been in prison here, what was my crime?

My crime was marrying a scheming crooked woman, who along with a senior policeman lied, just to get me out of the way.

Do they have a doggy monk accountant they seam very good at cooking the books. 

Just another "Annual" ploy to justify more money for their pockets.

Its done in the US also, and every where. 

In the US, they say it costs $35,000 per year, per inmate in Prison. 

Thats more than an average person makes on the streets, and many times they have to sacrifice at times of few. 

So I call BS...

Just my opinion...

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Certainly, feeding prisoners is a large budget line item, totalling Bt3.3 billion a year. And every Thai shares the burden through paying VAT and other taxes collected by the government.

Everyone-Thai or not- pays VAT and legitimately working non Thais pay their share of govt taxes. 

While not very pretty, Cockroaches are smack full of protein. Mixed with boiled rice can provide daily

nutrients for skinny prisoners and fat guards.

Well maybe they need to learn to grow food, not to make guns.