PM Reassures Digital Wallet Project Will Be Implemented

[webfact]

 

PRIME MINISTER SRETTHA Thavisin Friday (Oct.6) reassured that he will definitely go ahead with the government’s digital wallet handout project despite dissent from academics.

 

The prime minister said he has already resolved to implement the Pheu Thai campaign-promised populist project and will certainly not change his mind about it whilst listening to variable views from different people including academics and critics.

 

Srettha branded as “impossible” someone’s advice that the government only hand out the digital wallet to selected groups of people and not to all people throughout the country.

 

By Thai Newsroom Reporters

Top: Representative images of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s 10,000 baht digital wallet handout project. Top photo: Matichon Weekly

 

Full story: THAI NEWSROOM 2023-10-07

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

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[SiamAndy]

They gave out massive amounts of dollars in the United States during the shutdown and it led to the inflation problems there. It should be noted that inflation is still a major problem in the States due the handouts.

[ukrules]

This guy listens to nobody, he's always been the big boss and I suspect is very used to getting what he wants.

 

How long before coalition partners start to 'break off' into other factions?

 

I may be a small tax payer next year, do I get one of these digital wallets? ????

 

 

Edited October 6, 2023 by ukrules

[hotchilli]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

reassured that he will definitely go ahead with the government’s digital wallet handout project despite dissent from academics.

If they back-track on this, stall it out over months they will pay the penalty.

[Sharp]

So by all accounts its got an expiry date and can only be used within a certain locations.

 

You know what's next 

 

Unless your asleep!

[Gottfrid]

Ouch! 10k will make a huge difference in living standard. ????

[koolkarl]

The appointed dictator has spoken and so Thailand is on its way to be completely cashless in time.  Along with CRS agreements already active with most countries, the world has become a much smaller place thanks to Obama who started all of this CRS business.  I always dream if I could become a US congressman....

[Cake Monster]

If Srettha takes this Policy to full fruition despite all the warnings from 99 prominent Economists and Scholars, he will be taking the Country into many Years of payback  costs and heart ache

[Karma80]

Moral of the story - don't bribe people with uncosted promises of 10,000 Baht so you can get elected and hand over a bill for the massive debt that will take a decade or more to pay. But in the longer term, the rapid move to mass introduction of the digital Bhat CBDC should be the bigger concern. 

[Enzian]

They could put that money into something like improving education, but noooo. Because then people might start to think.

A week after the handout the "poor" will still be poor, and will be poor for the rest of their lives, waiting for the next handout.

But looking at where the baht has fallen, I'd say don't interrupt your enemy while he is making a mistake; the way PT is going, it looks like the baht may be in a range with a floor of 35/dollar for some time to come.

[sandyf]

2 hours ago, Sharp said:

So by all accounts its got an expiry date and can only be used within a certain locations.

 

You know what's next 

 

Unless your asleep!

 

Why do people on this forum want to ignore the fact that once teething problems were addressed previous government initiatives were reasonably successful.

The falang mindset?

[sandyf]

44 minutes ago, Enzian said:

A week after the handout the "poor" will still be poor, and will be poor for the rest of their lives, waiting for the next handout.

Nothing unusual there.

A week after the UK cost of living handout, the scroungers had a hangover and still scrounging, the more prudent were thankful the pressure had eased for a bit.

[webfact]

Thai government to give 10,000-baht digital wallet to citizens despite criticism
by Mitch Connor 

 

Picture courtesy of komchadluek

 

Despite facing staunch criticism from experts, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin confirmed on Friday that the Thai government will proceed with its plan to distribute a 10,000-baht digital wallet to every Thai citizen over the age of 16.

 

This announcement comes in response to comments from Bank of Thailand (BoT) governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput, who criticised the economic stimulus policy.

 

PM Srettha emphasised that his ruling Pheu Thai Party is open to all suggestions regarding the scheme. The government is committed to implementing the digital wallet scheme for an estimated 56 million people, with an expected launch date of February 1. However, the financial source for the proposed 560 billion baht (US$ 15,159,720,800) budget has yet to be disclosed.

 

Veerathai Santiprabhob, the previous BoT governor, expressed his concerns on Facebook on Friday. He warned that short-term populist policies from past governments resulted in non-performing fiscal burdens that negatively impacted the economy years later.

 

Full story: The Thaiger 2023-10-07

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

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[sandyf]

56 minutes ago, Enzian said:

But looking at where the baht has fallen, I'd say don't interrupt your enemy while he is making a mistake; the way PT is going, it looks like the baht may be in a range with a floor of 35/dollar for some time to come.

Debt to GDP in Thailand is about 60%, the US is more than double that.

It would appear the more advanced the economy the more debt the government is prepared to put around the neck of the citizens.

[Enzian]

1 hour ago, sandyf said:

It would appear the more advanced the economy the more debt the government is prepared to put around the neck of the citizens.

I suggest that citizens put this albatross around their own necks by who they vote for. It seems that being "advanced" is not the problem as much as being "democratic" with a small "d". AFAIK no one has disproved the theory that democracies eventually self-destruct due to the propensity of its citizens to vote themselves benefits from the public treasury, regardless of the consequences. And no, I have no idea of a solution for this problem. 

[PETERTHEEATER]

He would garner more support if he would release details of just how this hand-out will be made. Surely they must have a distribution plan by now with safeguards against corruption.

It is inevitable that individuals or their approved alternatives will have to go to a local collection point and sign for a card, or vouchers or whatever. It could be credited to inividual bank accounts too in the manner of current Social Security monthly payments.

If, at any point, the handout becomes cash it will be wide open to scams of poor, uniformed citizens in rural communities.

[sandyf]

5 hours ago, Enzian said:

I suggest that citizens put this albatross around their own necks by who they vote for. It seems that being "advanced" is not the problem as much as being "democratic" with a small "d". AFAIK no one has disproved the theory that democracies eventually self-destruct due to the propensity of its citizens to vote themselves benefits from the public treasury, regardless of the consequences. And no, I have no idea of a solution for this problem. 

You have truncated my post and distorted the context. Thailand has a much lower dept/GDP ratio than most of the so called "advanced" economies but for some reason this forum sees that as fiscal mismanagement.

In the UK the interest on the national debt is about one and a half times the defence budget, something that probably escapes the bulk of the population.

As for the point you tried to push, you will have to enlighten me, I am not aware of any democracies where the citizens have access to the public purse.

 

[sandyf]

2 hours ago, PETERTHEEATER said:

He would garner more support if he would release details of just how this hand-out will be made.

Why would it be any different to the previous initiative. That was based on a digital wallet and those without a smartphone went to the bank and got a card.

[ikke1959]

10 hours ago, sandyf said:

Why would it be any different to the previous initiative. That was based on a digital wallet and those without a smartphone went to the bank and got a card.

because now it is totally different than previous times.  Only useable in a radius of 4km around your registered house. Imagine people from the Is an living in Bangkok. Where could they spend their money? Travelling back to their house every month? Just as an example 

[bamnutsak]

He just formed a committee this week.

 

While I would have thought that he had some group working on this since the election (everyone knew PTP would lead), apparently he did not.

 

So I think it's fair to give him some time to sort out the details and release the funds.

 

The headwind on this one is growing though.

 

It could lead to the end of his brief stint as PM, along with malfeasance charges in a year or two. Just sayin'.

 

 

 

 

[sandyf]

6 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

because now it is totally different than previous times.  Only useable in a radius of 4km around your registered house. Imagine people from the Is an living in Bangkok. Where could they spend their money? Travelling back to their house every month? Just as an example 

Explain how the useable radius, or any other criteria on the use of the funds, would affect how payment was made, which was the point in question.

The majority on here have little benefit from the schemes so as usual the stock response is to rubbish the idea.

 

[Enzian]

1 hour ago, sandyf said:

The majority on here have little benefit from the schemes so as usual the stock response is to rubbish the idea.

Ah but we do have benefit from the vote-buying populist schemes! Foreign investors and other entities will not miss the fiscal mismanagement and growing national debt, and the failure to do anything meaningful to curb rising household debt. The baht is hovering around 37/dollar and may well stay in that range or worse (for Thais, not us) as long as this goes on. I can criticize (because I do wish the best for the people even if they do not understand how that is to be obtained), and still benefit in a sick way.

[Karma80]

5 hours ago, bamnutsak said:

He just formed a committee this week.

While I would have thought that he had some group working on this since the election (everyone knew PTP would lead), apparently he did not.

So I think it's fair to give him some time to sort out the details and release the funds.

The headwind on this one is growing though.

It could lead to the end of his brief stint as PM, along with malfeasance charges in a year or two. Just sayin'.

I for one hope that the PM actually takes professional advice and realises the implications for the country of a CBDC rollout beyond the obvious of just bribing people with 10,000 THB and the decade long debt that will be the legacy. 

The people of Thailand should be rightly concerned. The CBDC "digital wallet" is programmed to only let you spend it in a certain way and gives the Thai Central Bank absolute insight into where money gets spent, imbed programable controls, and delete, freeze or otherwise implement social controls without legal process. Feeling dystopian enough for anyone, yet? It's dystopian enough for many countries to have walked back their interest. Of course, if you were a quasi defacto dictatorship or kleptocracy, it would appeal a lot....

Edited October 8, 2023 by Karma80

[bamnutsak]

15 minutes ago, Karma80 said:

I for one hope that the PM actually takes professional advice

Well he did appoint himself as Minister of Finance, so that should tell you something about his seeking out professional advice.

 

 

[Dogmatix]

On 10/7/2023 at 4:07 AM, ukrules said:

This guy listens to nobody, he's always been the big boss and I suspect is very used to getting what he wants.

 

How long before coalition partners start to 'break off' into other factions?

 

I may be a small tax payer next year, do I get one of these digital wallets? ????

 

 

He has a new boss now, recently returned to Thailand who can get rid of him, if he doesn't listen. 

 

[sandyf]

On 10/8/2023 at 11:34 AM, Enzian said:

Ah but we do have benefit from the vote-buying populist schemes!

Highlights the ignorance in a nutshell.

[proton]

So millionaires and billionaires will be getting 10k as well?