Probe underway into yet another case of controversial ‘fancy’ lamp posts

[webfact]

 

Officials from the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) in Thailand’s eastern province of Sa Kaeo have launched an investigation into the installation of fancy lamp posts in their area, following the discovery of similar lamp posts being installed in many other provinces last year.

 

The posts, topped with the half bird half human Kinnara figurine, were installed very close to each other along a 100-metre stretch of a small road, which runs beside the Phra Sathueng Canal, and their bases were covered with thick grass. The project is said to have been worth 10.5 million baht and it was completed in 2017.

 

The director of the Sa Kaeo NACC Office and his officials conducted a field inspection of the fancy lamp posts yesterday (Wednesday), following social media posts questioning the project.

 

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Full story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/probe-underway-into-yet-another-case-of-controversial-fancy-lamp-posts/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2022-03-24

 

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[Gold Star]

I am amazed at all the wasted spending here.

 

Perfectly good main roads being ripped up and repaved, while feeder roads are full of gravel and potholes.

 

Massive sidewalk projects like those above go from nowhere to nowhere, unused, as the jungle takes it back. Meanwhile residents must navigate broken sidewalk footpaths in every town, with jagged steel, wires, holes and broken concrete, filling hospitals with twisted ankles, and broken bones of those brave enough to try to pass.

 

The 'Build it and forget it' mentality provides no budget for maintenance after completion, so these projects degrade and become a monument to the excess of the civilization, like the pyramids in Egypt.

 

Who is ever held accountable for these massive fiscal wastes and resources? As costs of energy and materials is about to skyrocket, these blunders will become even more costly to the people of Thailand, as basic needs go unaddressed.

[Excel]

7 minutes ago, Gold Star said:

I am amazed at all the wasted spending here.

 

Perfectly good main roads being ripped up and repaved, while feeder roads are full of gravel and potholes.

 

Massive sidewalk projects like those above go from nowhere to nowhere, unused, as the jungle takes it back. Meanwhile residents must navigate broken sidewalk footpaths in every town, with jagged steel, wires, holes and broken concrete, filling hospitals with twisted ankles, and broken bones of those brave enough to try to pass.

 

The 'Build it and forget it' mentality provides no budget for maintenance after completion, so these projects degrade and become a monument to the excess of the civilization, like the pyramids in Egypt.

 

Who is ever held accountable for these massive fiscal wastes and resources? As costs of energy and materials is about to skyrocket, these blunders will become even more costly to the people of Thailand, as basic needs go unaddressed.

Apart from the wasted expenditure, in my opinion they are absolutely tasteless.  Nothing but cheap tack made out to be expensively good by the people lining their pockets.

[biggles45]

But are they connected to the electricity supply? 

[DavoTheGun]

The amount of money being spent on Road Widening is just amazing, all over thailand, most of these roads do not need widening, not enough traffic, besides the fact they are depriveng people of land they used for a store, grow rice etc, just disgraceful.

 

[TheFishman1]

Set my facial is making a lot of money off those lamps CIT

[AhFarangJa]

1 hour ago, DavoTheGun said:

The amount of money being spent on Road Widening is just amazing, all over thailand, most of these roads do not need widening, not enough traffic, besides the fact they are depriveng people of land they used for a store, grow rice etc, just disgraceful.

 

Wholeheartedly agree, at present they are widening the road from our village to Prasart, totally unnecessary, and they are cutting down hundreds of trees, many of them decades old that provide shade and scenery. These will never be replaced, and as you say, what of the land they are taking from the villages. Someone, somewhere is making a massive kickback.

[rwill]

9 minutes ago, AhFarangJa said:

Wholeheartedly agree, at present they are widening the road from our village to Prasart, totally unnecessary, and they are cutting down hundreds of trees, many of them decades old that provide shade and scenery. These will never be replaced, and as you say, what of the land they are taking from the villages. Someone, somewhere is making a massive kickback.

They have been widening the road from Ratchaburi to Chombueng, where I live, a section at a time each year.  The even sillier thing is they have also been putting in street lights.  They put them in the year before they are going to widen that section.  Then the next year they have to be moved back for the widening.

[Paul Henry]

You doubters, this is an investment in Thailands  future. Much better than education.

[blackshadow]

9 minutes ago, Paul Henry said:

You doubters, this is an investment in Thailands  future. Much better than education.

love your sarcasm !!!

[LennyW]

Wow, must be high quality, installed in 2017 and still standing!!

[huangnon]

On 3/24/2022 at 2:58 PM, AhFarangJa said:

Wholeheartedly agree, at present they are widening the road from our village to Prasart, totally unnecessary, and they are cutting down hundreds of trees, many of them decades old that provide shade and scenery. These will never be replaced, and as you say, what of the land they are taking from the villages. Someone, somewhere is making a massive kickback.

Look at who gets the timber concessions.

 

Anyway, who needs trees when you can have shiny "fancy lamps"?

[Will B Good]

Has anyone ever come across the 'findings' of one of these probes???

[unblocktheplanet]

Off-topic, I like them! Anybody know where I can order a couple for my house? (Serious question.)

[overherebc]

On 3/25/2022 at 7:42 AM, LennyW said:

Wow, must be high quality, installed in 2017 and still standing!!

Grass is holding them up.

[Will B Good]

23 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

Off-topic, I like them! Anybody know where I can order a couple for my house? (Serious question.)

Dark night, wire cutters, shovel............job done.

[jak2002003]

On 3/24/2022 at 2:58 PM, AhFarangJa said:

Wholeheartedly agree, at present they are widening the road from our village to Prasart, totally unnecessary, and they are cutting down hundreds of trees, many of them decades old that provide shade and scenery. These will never be replaced, and as you say, what of the land they are taking from the villages. Someone, somewhere is making a massive kickback.

I though that was just happening in my village in CM.  This year it's got wrecked and the once pretty rural village has turned into a building site. 

 

All the massive old trees and bamboo thickets have been cut down, the streams / rivers have been lined with concrete or put into concrete drains then buried, and roads widened into dusty white concrete runways. 

 

Also have strange lamp post situation.  Still have the old ones, then between them new solar powered ones, then new old style electric ones between them.  Some places there are 3 lamp post, one of each variety, inches away from each other.

 

It's depressing.  All the wildlife has gone. No trees for the owls and birds, no water lilies or water plants for the frogs, turtles dragonflies in the now concrete steep sided streams. 

 

The lizards that used to bask at the side of the roads are gone, as are the storks and wild ducks that uses to use the marshes ..which have been filled in with red dirt to make housing estates. 

 

It's happened over 2 years and has really snowballed.  Lived here 16 years and previous to this 'progress' was very slow.