Many Projects Get Okay In Final Thai Cabinet Meeting

[webfact]

Many projects get okay in final Cabinet meeting

By Piyanart Srivalo

The Nation

More than 200 items and Bt66-bn expenditure discussed in two sessions

The Cabinet yesterday held a marathon meeting from morning to late at night to debate and approve more than 200 agenda items during its final session before House dissolution.

Many of the items concerned major spending measures valued at Bt66 billion in total. Of the 208 items on the agenda, 102 were for consideration, 48 were additional items and 58 were merely for acknowledgement.

During the initial eight-hour session from 8am to 4pm, the Cabinet approved 96 items, including the mid-year allocation of Bt700 million for various projects. Around 4pm, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva called a break in order to meet His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. The Cabinet resumed its meeting at 7pm.

Some of the projects approved yesterday have been criticised as populist policies to help the government gain political advantage ahead of the upcoming general election. For example, the Cabinet surprised the housing market with its approval of a subsidy measure, whereby the Government Housing Bank will lend Bt25 billion to finance first-time purchases by house-buyers. Borrowers will be exempted from paying interest in the first two years, aside from not having to pay a mortgage registration fee.

The Cabinet also approved a 5-per-cent pay increase for state university officials and the officials of 25 other government agencies. Deputy Government Spokesman Marut Masayawanit said the government would spend Bt397.21 million for the pay increase for officials in 14 state universities, 50 Rajabhat universities and 25 other agencies.

Several budgets were approved as part of the Pracha Wiwat scheme, which is the economic package aimed at supporting lower-income groups. The package has also been dubbed a populist policy by critics. Among the budgets approved was Bt123 million for the National Police Office to implement a project to make Bangkok "a safe and crime-free city", plus Bt19 million for the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority to implement projects to regulate street vendors and taxi motorcyclists. The Cabinet also approved Bt212 million proposed by the Interior Ministry to renovate Udon Thani municipality office, which was damaged during last year's red-shirt protests. It approved Bt5.5 million proposed by the Finance Ministry to compensate the BTS Skytrain operator following the damage incurred during the rioting. However, the Cabinet asked for a review concerning another Bt100 million demanded as compensation for business losses.

The Cabinet also expanded from Bt5 million to Bt15 million the funding for loans for business vendors affected by the riots in the Rajprasong area, and extended the period for lending the money from December last year to June this year.

-- The Nation 2011-05-04

[jucel]

more vote buying!

[timekeeper]

more vote buying!

The Cabinet also approved Bt212 million proposed by the Interior Ministry to renovate Udon Thani municipality office, which was damaged during last year's red-shirt protests

Thai peoples tax money being spent to repair the red revolutionaries efforts to bring down the legitimate government

212 million would have built a provincial hospital to help the poor families the reds claim to be trying to help

shame on you Reds for this example of your destruction and for every other cost you have needlessly incurred the Thai people by your senseless pursuit of the fugitive criminal Thaksin's doctrine ..........

[Valentine]

I would have thought this typical of governments anywhere as they spend their budget & push through their projects before parliament is dissolved. It is certainly not unique to Thailand & my recollection is that every past government in this country has done exactly the same thing.

[Pib]

And Parliament don't have to approve any of these? Gosh, a small group of folks (i.e., the Cabinet) sure have a lot of power in Thailand. Guess it helps to maintain a government with authoritarian traits under the banner of democracy.

Under the U.S. system, while the President's administration routinely drafts up such appropriations/bills/programs, Congress has to approve such appropriations/programs and then they go to the President for approval/veto...if approved by the President, then they become law/get funded/go into effect. Until then, they are just wishes/desires. Or said another way, Congress primarily controls the funds. Of course Congress sure don't seem to have a problem passing big money programs into law...you can tell that by the budget deficit.

If the Thai system required involvement by Parliament on more appropriations/programs versus certain types I expect not nearly as many programs would get passed into law due to extreme infighting and the apparently inability to obtain a quorum many times to debate/vote on proposed laws/programs. But maybe an authoritarian govt with some democracy mixed in like the current system is the best system for Thailand...or not. I'll be the first to admit that a governmental system that works well in one country, may not work at all in another country due to the culture & society (and people who want to stay in control).

[webfact]

PM Defends Speedy Budget Approval

The prime minister says the speedy approval of proposed budget put on the last Cabinet meeting agenda is necessary as it could otherwise be pending for months until the next government takes office.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said the submission of more than 200 issues to yesterday's Cabinet meeting, likely to be the last one prior to the House dissolution, was due to the Constitution's restriction banning the administrative branch from making any decision with obligation on its successor when the House dissolution is officially declared..

Abhisit stated the proposed budget for aid to flood- and drought-affected people needed urgent approval otherwse it would be delayed for three months.

The prime minister said most of the spending issues put on the Cabinet's agenda were the payment for education and health professionals.

He said such issues needed to be approved while the Defense Ministry's requested budget was among the issues postponed from the previous meetings.

At the same time, Abhisit would not confirm whether he had already submitted the House dissolution decree to His Majesty the King for royal endorsement.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said the Cabinet' meeting yesterday was not meant to serve interests of government coalition parties

Suthep insisted the acceleration of the approval of requested budgets was necessary as the charter prohibits the interim government from endorsing any project or budget during its 90-day term.

The deputy premier added he expected the Constitution Court to release its ruling on the legality of the charter's organic bills on the election before the House is dissolved.

Suthep said he had not discussed the date of the House dissolution with the premier and the decision solely rests with the latter.

-- Tan Network 2011-05-04

[NCFC]

more vote buying!

The Cabinet also approved Bt212 million proposed by the Interior Ministry to renovate Udon Thani municipality office, which was damaged during last year's red-shirt protests

Thai peoples tax money being spent to repair the red revolutionaries efforts to bring down the legitimate government

212 million would have built a provincial hospital to help the poor families the reds claim to be trying to help

shame on you Reds for this example of your destruction and for every other cost you have needlessly incurred the Thai people by your senseless pursuit of the fugitive criminal Thaksin's doctrine ..........

I seem to remember rather a large sum of money had to be spent on repairing Government House after the yellow shirts ransacked it during their occupation.

[webfact]

Bt13.7 billion earmakred in final Cabinet meeting: spokesman

The final Cabinet meeting has allocated Bt13.74 billion from the mid-year emergencencies fund to finance a number of projects before calling a snap election, government spokesman Panithan Wattanayagorn said on Wednesday.

The Cabinet held a marathon session from Tuesday's morning to late night, lasting a total of more than 13 hours, to clear work backlog before announcing the House dissolution.

Panithan said the mid-year budgetary allocation was deemed necessary in order to enable various projects to proceed during the transition period as the next government would come to power in about three months.

-- The Nation 2011-05-04

[timekeeper]

more vote buying!

The Cabinet also approved Bt212 million proposed by the Interior Ministry to renovate Udon Thani municipality office, which was damaged during last year's red-shirt protests

Thai peoples tax money being spent to repair the red revolutionaries efforts to bring down the legitimate government

212 million would have built a provincial hospital to help the poor families the reds claim to be trying to help

shame on you Reds for this example of your destruction and for every other cost you have needlessly incurred the Thai people by your senseless pursuit of the fugitive criminal Thaksin's doctrine ..........

I seem to remember rather a large sum of money had to be spent on repairing Government House after the yellow shirts ransacked it during their occupation.

maybe so but i don't think they burnt it to the ground though

the equivalent of burglary is one thing but arson is a completely different and far more serious charge

simply ask yourself this?

my house;

which would i prefer?

a. being burgled ?

or

b. burnt to the ground ?

now give me a minute, let me think about that.................

[webfact]

Cabinet Approves Budget for Interim Govt

The Cabinet meeting has approved an emergency budget for the interim government at more than 13 billion baht.

It has also approved a budget to host an election at almost four billion baht.

Acting Government Spokesman Panitan Watanayagorn said the last Cabinet meeting of the Abhisit administration spent 15 hours considering 155 issues.

The meeting approved a budget of 13.75 billion baht for the interim government for the continuity of various state projects after the House is dissolved.

If the budget is not enough, the government can seek the Election Commission, or EC's, approval for an additional fund.

He added the government will continue with its reform projects after the House is dissolved and related agencies are supposed to report on the progress of the projects in five weeks.

The Cabinet also approved a budget of 1.81 billion baht for the Defense Ministry to take care of the Thai-Cambodian border situation.

It endorsed a pay hike for paramilitary troopers from 55 baht to 220 baht per day, with a total budget of 172 million baht.

The meeting also approved a budget of 3.82 billion baht for the EC to hold the general election, as requested by the agency itself.

Panitan said Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has asked all state officials to abide by the election laws and remain neutral.

Ministers have been asked to remove all billboards and signs that advertise them and their ministries' achievements to prevent them from gaining advantage and violating the election laws.

-- Tan Network 2011-05-04

[maewrocks]

more vote buying!

The Cabinet also approved Bt212 million proposed by the Interior Ministry to renovate Udon Thani municipality office, which was damaged during last year's red-shirt protests

Thai peoples tax money being spent to repair the red revolutionaries efforts to bring down the legitimate government

212 million would have built a provincial hospital to help the poor families the reds claim to be trying to help

shame on you Reds for this example of your destruction and for every other cost you have needlessly incurred the Thai people by your senseless pursuit of the fugitive criminal Thaksin's doctrine ..........

I seem to remember rather a large sum of money had to be spent on repairing Government House after the yellow shirts ransacked it during their occupation.

maybe so but i don't think they burnt it to the ground though

the equivalent of burglary is one thing but arson is a completely different and far more serious charge

simply ask yourself this?

my house;

which would i prefer?

a. being burgled ?

or

b. burnt to the ground ?

now give me a minute, let me think about that.................

Yeah, but they weren't murdered by the army. If they had been shot at & killed they would have done just the same. And how about the airport closure, the lost revenue & loss of goodwill from that cost the country way more than the damage that the reds supposedly did.

[whybother]

Yeah, but they weren't murdered by the army. If they had been shot at & killed they would have done just the same. And how about the airport closure, the lost revenue & loss of goodwill from that cost the country way more than the damage that the reds supposedly did.

The airport was closed for 9 days. Sure, it caused a heap of inconvenience, but it equates to a baggage handlers strike at Heathrow.

The red shirts protest went for 2 months, on top of a very violent Songkran the previous year. The red shirts parked themselves in a major tourist area for 6 weeks. The red shirts invaded a hospital. The red shirts killed civilians and army with their grenades.

I think that's going to cause a bit more of a loss of goodwill and long term tourist revenue than the airport being shut down for 9 days.

[maewrocks]

Yeah, but they weren't murdered by the army. If they had been shot at & killed they would have done just the same. And how about the airport closure, the lost revenue & loss of goodwill from that cost the country way more than the damage that the reds supposedly did.

The airport was closed for 9 days. Sure, it caused a heap of inconvenience, but it equates to a baggage handlers strike at Heathrow.

The red shirts protest went for 2 months, on top of a very violent Songkran the previous year. The red shirts parked themselves in a major tourist area for 6 weeks. The red shirts invaded a hospital. The red shirts killed civilians and army with their grenades.

I think that's going to cause a bit more of a loss of goodwill and long term tourist revenue than the airport being shut down for 9 days.

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

[whybother]

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

Why not go back a bit further then and look at who "caused" the yellow shirts. I think you could "thank" that person "for the whole lot" (especially the red shirt protests).

[maewrocks]

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

Why not go back a bit further then and look at who "caused" the yellow shirts. I think you could "thank" that person "for the whole lot" (especially the red shirt protests).

Agree totally, Sonthi & those others jealous of Thaksin's success & popularity certainly have a lot to answer for. Thanks for pointing that out.

[whybother]

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

Why not go back a bit further then and look at who "caused" the yellow shirts. I think you could "thank" that person "for the whole lot" (especially the red shirt protests).

Agree totally, Sonthi & those others jealous of Thaksin's success & popularity certainly have a lot to answer for. Thanks for pointing that out.

[animatic]

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

Why not go back a bit further then and look at who "caused" the yellow shirts. I think you could "thank" that person "for the whole lot" (especially the red shirt protests).

The Red shirts were not caused by the Yellow shirts,

they existed as their parts when Thaksin was still in office, and how could red shirts be attacking PAD encampments in Bangkok while Samak was PM if the Airport siege of 9 days, 'caused the red shirts"?

Nothing but propagandist hyperbole.

[Thai at Heart]

Well at least the money will keep flowing for a while, unlike normally when there is an election and all the projects completely stop while the next reshuffles and positions are sorted out.

However, it is worth asking how come this doesn't have to go to be vetted by Parliament? How can the cabinet simply put up state employee wages because they feel like it?

[rubl]

Agree totally, Sonthi & those others jealous of Thaksin's success & popularity certainly have a lot to answer for. Thanks for pointing that out.

Please read the HRW report. It blames the government and army, amongst some others

[Buchholz]

Yeah, but they weren't murdered by the army. If they had been shot at & killed they would have done just the same. And how about the airport closure, the lost revenue & loss of goodwill from that cost the country way more than the damage that the reds supposedly did.

The airport was closed for 9 days. Sure, it caused a heap of inconvenience, but it equates to a baggage handlers strike at Heathrow.

The red shirts protest went for 2 months, on top of a very violent Songkran the previous year. The red shirts parked themselves in a major tourist area for 6 weeks. The red shirts invaded a hospital. The red shirts killed civilians and army with their grenades.

I think that's going to cause a bit more of a loss of goodwill and long term tourist revenue than the airport being shut down for 9 days.

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

1. Please provide the link of your source.

2. Please use normal font and normal size, the same as all other members do.

3. Please provide the amount (with source) for the monetary damage the Red Shirts did (so as to justify your claim theirs was far less).

4. Thank you.

/

Edited May 4, 2011 by Buchholz

[DP25]

'Thailand's central bank says the protests that closed Bangkok's airports late last year cost the country more than $8 billion'

& their actions & the consequent injustices CAUSED the red shirts, so you can thank them for the whole lot!

That's a billion dollars per day, or more than the economic output of entire country of Thailand per day. AMAZING

[Bagwan]

Agree totally, Sonthi & those others jealous of Thaksin's success & popularity certainly have a lot to answer for. Thanks for pointing that out.

And Thaksin's successes were? Apart from robbing the country blind that is. Popularity is a transient thing. Ask any former Bush and/or Blair supporter what they think of their heroes now.

[phiphidon]

1. Please provide the link of your source.

2. Please use normal font and normal size, the same as all other members do.

3. Please provide the amount (with source) for the monetary damage the Red Shirts did (so as to justify your claim theirs was far less).

4. Thank you.

/

The Bank of Thailand brought out a report entitled "Thailand's Tourism Industry After The Closure Of Airports" regarding the cost to the economy of the Yellow Shirt Occupation of the airports as 290 Billion Baht ;

"The political unrest has not only affected the tourism industry but also other related industries," said the study, titled Thailand's Tourism Industry After The Closure Of Airports.

"Based on analysis, total losses were 290 billion baht, equivalent to 3.0 of nominal GDP (gross domestic product),"the study added. It said the losses included 120 billion baht in the service industry, 90 billion baht in logistics and 60 billion baht in industry.

http://www.abc.net.a.../07/2461158.htm

20 Billion baht losses not specified - sundry expenses? Still a hell of a lot of money!

With regard to the troubles last year in Bangkok the estimated total damage was 15 billion baht.

"larger businesses and corporations whose properties were damaged or destroyed on May 19th, accounting for approximately THB 12bn of the THB 15bn (USD 1.2bn) in estimated damages"

http://www.businessr...-insurance-1271

[Buchholz]

How about the loss of business to the 38 gutted buildings during their months of restoration / rebuilding?

What was the normal intake on any given day to the largest mall in Thailand prior to it's burning?

How about about all the buildings destroyed/damaged outside of Bangkok?

(that's just a start to the highly incomplete nature of the 2nd article)

[whybother]

The Bank of Thailand brought out a report entitled "Thailand's Tourism Industry After The Closure Of Airports" regarding the cost to the economy of the Yellow Shirt Occupation of the airports as 290 Billion Baht ;

<snip>

With regard to the troubles last year in Bangkok the estimated total damage was 15 billion baht.

"larger businesses and corporations whose properties were damaged or destroyed on May 19th, accounting for approximately THB 12bn of the THB 15bn (USD 1.2bn) in estimated damages"

The yellow shirts damages was 290 bil baht to the economy.

The red shirts damages was 15 bil baht to "larger businesses and corporations whose properties were damaged or destroyed on May 19th". Nothing about the rest of the economy.

[webfact]

FINAL CABINET MEETING

Govt defends huge Cabinet splurge

By Piyanart Srivalo

The Nation

The government today tried to dismiss criticism that the Cabinet used its last meeting to approve an enormous budget for a huge number of projects in a bid to boost government parties' chances of winning the upcoming election.

The budget is reportedly well into the hundreds of billion baht.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday said the Cabinet decided to approve budgets for many projects because after House dissolution, his administration would become a caretaker government that could not decide on issues that would commit the new government.

Abhisit is expected to dissolve the House of Representatives within days.

"We have approved projects that have long been planned, such as the project to provide a budget for special allowances to doctors and teachers," the premier said. "Also, we have to act fast on projects to help drought victims."

According to Abhisit, if his Cabinet had not given the green light, a large number of projects would have been left pending for at least three months.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said important projects needed approval because people such as flood victims were waiting for help.

"There were many agendas the Cabinet had to consider because all ministries have to push for their necessary issues too," he said.

The Cabinet held a marathon session from Tuesday morning to late Wednesday night.

At a press conference yesterday, Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn said the Cabinet spent as much as 15 hours considering 155 programmes.

Panitan said the number was not unusually high given that most projects had already been approved in principle.

He also said the budget for the projects, though huge, would be committed over many consecutive fiscal years.

Panitan tried to emphasise that the Budget Bureau had already concluded that the Cabinet's green light for the projects on Tuesday required only Bt13.7billion from emergency funds.

"We have to push for urgent projects such as the project to deliver assistance to disaster victims and the project to solve Thai - Cambodian border conflicts," he said.

Panitan also pointed out that the Cabinet had to approve many other projects to ensure the continuity of projects that solved people's problems.

-- The Nation 2011-05-05

[phiphidon]

How about the loss of business to the 38 gutted buildings during their months of restoration / rebuilding?

What was the normal intake on any given day to the largest mall in Thailand prior to it's burning?

How about about all the buildings destroyed/damaged outside of Bangkok?

(that's just a start to the highly incomplete nature of the 2nd article)

Don't blame me if the information isn't to your taste. I have just demonstrated that it is easy to find this information out yourself. Instead of demanding proof and source whenever something is said that you do not agree with why not do some digging yourself - the information there was given by the insurers - perhaps you can find more info about other damages so that you win this peeing contest over who caused the most damage. Sheesh!

[phiphidon]

The Bank of Thailand brought out a report entitled "Thailand's Tourism Industry After The Closure Of Airports" regarding the cost to the economy of the Yellow Shirt Occupation of the airports as 290 Billion Baht ;

<snip>

With regard to the troubles last year in Bangkok the estimated total damage was 15 billion baht.

"larger businesses and corporations whose properties were damaged or destroyed on May 19th, accounting for approximately THB 12bn of the THB 15bn (USD 1.2bn) in estimated damages"

The yellow shirts damages was 290 bil baht to the economy.

The red shirts damages was 15 bil baht to "larger businesses and corporations whose properties were damaged or destroyed on May 19th". Nothing about the rest of the economy.

See my reply to Buccholz.

[Buchholz]

How about the loss of business to the 38 gutted buildings during their months of restoration / rebuilding?

What was the normal intake on any given day to the largest mall in Thailand prior to it's burning?

How about about all the buildings destroyed/damaged outside of Bangkok?

(that's just a start to the highly incomplete nature of the 2nd article)

Don't blame me if the information isn't to your taste.

It has nothing to do with my taste. It's just glaringly incomplete.

I have just demonstrated that it is easy to find this information out yourself. Instead of demanding proof and source whenever something is said that you do not agree with why not do some digging yourself

Simply because I'm not the one making inaccurate claims. maewrocks was.

You want me to research something that's not there and something that is only claimed by maewrocks in a drive-by throwaway one-liner???

You want me to justify his post???

Sorry, it doesn't work that way.

Not by a long shot.

.

Edited May 5, 2011 by Buchholz

[whybother]

The yellow shirts damages was 290 bil baht to the economy.

The red shirts damages was 15 bil baht to "larger businesses and corporations whose properties were damaged or destroyed on May 19th". Nothing about the rest of the economy.

See my reply to Buccholz.

Don't blame me if the information isn't to your taste. I have just demonstrated that it is easy to find this information out yourself. Instead of demanding proof and source whenever something is said that you do not agree with why not do some digging yourself - the information there was given by the insurers - perhaps you can find more info about other damages so that you win this peeing contest over who caused the most damage. Sheesh!

The information isn't to my taste because you are comparing apples and oranges to try to prove your point.