Poor Rating For Govt Relief Efforts: Thailand Flood

[webfact]

Poor rating for govt relief efforts

The Nation

The government has not done enough to help Thais battle the country's worst floods in 20 years, according to results of two out of three surveys released yesterday.

Among those surveyed by Abac Poll, 79 per cent said the government's support was insufficient and not distributed efficiently; and 68.6 per cent said the floodrelief supplies themselves did not sufficiently meet victims' needs.

The poll surveyed 1,012 community leaders and local officials in 10 flooded provinces.

Only 25.5 per cent of those surveyed by Dusit Poll were satisfied with the support provided by the government to those affected by flooding.

In a survey by Rangsit University, however, 62 per cent of respondents had confidence in Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her leadership in tackling the crisis; 59.8 per cent had faith in her Cabinet; and 80 per cent had confidence in the Thai people to cooperate in dealing with the problem. The survey was conducted from October 46 on 1,080 people in Bangkok and floodaffected provinces.

-- The Nation 2011-10-10

[hellodolly]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

Edited October 10, 2011 by hellodolly

[Swiss1960]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

[Bakseedaa]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Come on guys, the people suffering most of the flood damages and devistation are mainly Red Shirts.. sweet revenge for burning down Bangkok... They voted in this government, the government installed the ministers, and the ministers are proving useless... anyone surprised..? I donated 3 of my wifes old bikinis and 2 pairs of the kids water-wings... hope it helps...

[Swiss1960]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Come on guys, the people suffering most of the flood damages and devistation are mainly Red Shirts.. sweet revenge for burning down Bangkok... They voted in this government, the government installed the ministers, and the ministers are proving useless... anyone surprised..? I donated 3 of my wifes old bikinis and 2 pairs of the kids water-wings... hope it helps...

I think your comment is outrageous! The people affected are kids, women, men, both Thai and Farang, independent of who they did vote for! You seem to lack any decency and manners! That's my personal comment

With regards to the ministers installed, they can not be blamed for all that happened! Not even the best new ministers can't deal with such a catastrophe, if their departments - for many years led by the Democrats - are not ready / prepared / willing to deal with such an event!

Or vice versa: Not even the worst minister installed by the new government could have stopped a well organized and ready department to deal with such a flood... and if their department is not ready, then the majority of the blame must go to the previous government. A minister can NOT undo and correct all the mistakes of a 3-y government in only 3 months.

[bkkjames]

Maybe they can seek the advice of someone who fixed bangkok's traffic in 6 months?

[longtom]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Maybe we cannot make them responsible for all the failures, but certainly for doing sweet all nothing the last 2 weeks for exampe to prepare Bangkok for the inevitable floods! Today calling for additional sandbags the first time, starting to build additional floodwalls?

[Credo]

My expectations are a little less political. I expect to see a coordinated effort by all government agencies toward minimizing the effects of the floods. I expect to see massive mobilization of civilian and gov't personnel to build barriers where homes, property and lives can be spared. I expect evacuations, maybe mandatory for areas that must be sacrificed.

I expect information to be given (preferably in English as well as Thai). All I know is that I live in an area that is likely to experience problems; according to the newspaper.

I expect to be told where to go before the floods hit, how to get there and what to bring. I would prefer to be told if I can drive there, will there be buses or should I wait until a helicopter comes and airlifts me from the roof.

I expect to know the forecast for rain, instead of having to look at the sky and to know if the flooding on the nearby road is just from a heavy rain, or is this the beginning of something bigger. I expect to not be standing up to my tits in water taking a poll about flood relief.

.....but then that's just me.

[Swiss1960]

My expectations are a little less political. I expect to see a coordinated effort by all government agencies toward minimizing the effects of the floods. I expect to see massive mobilization of civilian and gov't personnel to build barriers where homes, property and lives can be spared. I expect evacuations, maybe mandatory for areas that must be sacrificed.

I expect information to be given (preferably in English as well as Thai). All I know is that I live in an area that is likely to experience problems; according to the newspaper.

I expect to be told where to go before the floods hit, how to get there and what to bring. I would prefer to be told if I can drive there, will there be buses or should I wait until a helicopter comes and airlifts me from the roof.

I expect to know the forecast for rain, instead of having to look at the sky and to know if the flooding on the nearby road is just from a heavy rain, or is this the beginning of something bigger. I expect to not be standing up to my tits in water taking a poll about flood relief.

.....but then that's just me.

I agree with ALL your points and I would expect the exact same if I would be in your position! And I specially agree that it should not be seen politically! As I said above: The current government might not act fast enough and appropriate to the current crisis, but readiness of the various responsible government agencies was mainly in the responsibility of the previous government... it is not the first time, such a flood catastrophe happens...

[GentlemanJim]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Come on guys, the people suffering most of the flood damages and devistation are mainly Red Shirts.. sweet revenge for burning down Bangkok... They voted in this government, the government installed the ministers, and the ministers are proving useless... anyone surprised..? I donated 3 of my wifes old bikinis and 2 pairs of the kids water-wings... hope it helps...

I think your comment is outrageous! The people affected are kids, women, men, both Thai and Farang, independent of who they did vote for! You seem to lack any decency and manners! That's my personal comment

With regards to the ministers installed, they can not be blamed for all that happened! Not even the best new ministers can't deal with such a catastrophe, if their departments - for many years led by the Democrats - are not ready / prepared / willing to deal with such an event!

Or vice versa: Not even the worst minister installed by the new government could have stopped a well organized and ready department to deal with such a flood... and if their department is not ready, then the majority of the blame must go to the previous government. A minister can NOT undo and correct all the mistakes of a 3-y government in only 3 months.

Get off your soap box Swiss1960. At the end of the day it is exactly the fault of the Government at the time. The Government departments responsible for the various crisis centers and evacuation and relief protocols have been there for decades and are not party political. The current Government have been fiddling whilst Rome burns. They are more interested in trying to discuss their failed popularist promises of minimum wages and tablet computers for school children than addressing what is effectively a national emergency. More interested in playing MP football matches in Cambodia after only weeks in power (as a not even thinly disguised mission of meeting the fugitive criminal Thaksin), or wasting billions on ridiculous fuel subsidies to help the poor, which in fact only help the rich, as the poor drive around on mopeds using 50 baht of gas a week, whilst the rich see the benefit when filling up their trucks at the gas station. Yesterday when Juttaporn should have been handing out rice and water he was too busy inaugerating the first 'Red District'. Well you make your bed and you lie in it.

The only concrete thing the Government seem to have come up with to alleviate the forthcoming financial disaster in Bangkok is an idea that would shame most kindergarten students, namely to line up as many boats as possible and 'rush' the water in the river out to sea!! Seems the Science Minister and his Scientific advisers should have studied science at an early stage in their education.

The current lack of Leadership and Executive command and control is 100% the fault of the presiding Government.

[whybother]

I think your comment is outrageous! The people affected are kids, women, men, both Thai and Farang, independent of who they did vote for! You seem to lack any decency and manners! That's my personal comment

With regards to the ministers installed, they can not be blamed for all that happened! Not even the best new ministers can't deal with such a catastrophe, if their departments - for many years led by the Democrats - are not ready / prepared / willing to deal with such an event!

Or vice versa: Not even the worst minister installed by the new government could have stopped a well organized and ready department to deal with such a flood... and if their department is not ready, then the majority of the blame must go to the previous government. A minister can NOT undo and correct all the mistakes of a 3-y government in only 3 months.

Do you mean Thaksin didn't fix all the problems? He was in charge for twice as long as the Democrats! And he's been on the phone to the current government non stop for the last 3 months. Surely he's been passing over his knowledge on how to deal with floods.

There is very little they could have done to stop the current flooding. There is probably very little that could have been done by any of the last few governments. Things should have been started more than 10 years ago to be able to deal with these current floods ... and even then, they probably wouldn't have been sufficient.

The problem being highlighted in the OP is the current government's "Relief Efforts" ... that is, what they have done to help people affected by the floods.

Too little. Too late.

[yeikloen]

Well said!

My expectations are a little less political. I expect to see a coordinated effort by all government agencies toward minimizing the effects of the floods. I expect to see massive mobilization of civilian and gov't personnel to build barriers where homes, property and lives can be spared. I expect evacuations, maybe mandatory for areas that must be sacrificed.

I expect information to be given (preferably in English as well as Thai). All I know is that I live in an area that is likely to experience problems; according to the newspaper.

I expect to be told where to go before the floods hit, how to get there and what to bring. I would prefer to be told if I can drive there, will there be buses or should I wait until a helicopter comes and airlifts me from the roof.

I expect to know the forecast for rain, instead of having to look at the sky and to know if the flooding on the nearby road is just from a heavy rain, or is this the beginning of something bigger. I expect to not be standing up to my tits in water taking a poll about flood relief.

.....but then that's just me.

[Boater]

trouble is , in thailand everything comes politcal .... there should be departments who have plans ready in case of this senerio..... but TIT

[phiphidon]

I think your comment is outrageous! The people affected are kids, women, men, both Thai and Farang, independent of who they did vote for! You seem to lack any decency and manners! That's my personal comment

With regards to the ministers installed, they can not be blamed for all that happened! Not even the best new ministers can't deal with such a catastrophe, if their departments - for many years led by the Democrats - are not ready / prepared / willing to deal with such an event!

Or vice versa: Not even the worst minister installed by the new government could have stopped a well organized and ready department to deal with such a flood... and if their department is not ready, then the majority of the blame must go to the previous government. A minister can NOT undo and correct all the mistakes of a 3-y government in only 3 months.

Do you mean Thaksin didn't fix all the problems? He was in charge for twice as long as the Democrats! And he's been on the phone to the current government non stop for the last 3 months. Surely he's been passing over his knowledge on how to deal with floods.

There is very little they could have done to stop the current flooding. There is probably very little that could have been done by any of the last few governments. Things should have been started more than 10 years ago to be able to deal with these current floods ... and even then, they probably wouldn't have been sufficient.

The problem being highlighted in the OP is the current government's "Relief Efforts" ... that is, what they have done to help people affected by the floods.

Too little. Too late.

Lets put this provision of relief efforts into perspective - as far as the compensation efforts by the previous government is concerned, they have a way to go yet.

4th August 2010 : DDPM warns 27 provinces of flashfloods, mudslides - Floods Start

http://reliefweb.int/node/363144

2 Months later.....................

27th October 2010: Cabinet agrees budget to give flood relief

http://reliefweb.int/node/372495

3rd November 2010: Government will pay relief money this week

http://reliefweb.int/node/374817

10th November 2010: Government admits delays in paying relief money - will now be paid by end of month

http://reliefweb.int/node/373541

16th November 2010: Head of National Bureau of Disaster Management reveals Disaster Recovery and Mitigation budget has been cut by 25 per cent on 2009 levels and equal to $1.25 per person - is not enough

http://reliefweb.int/node/374967

4 months after floods begin......................

23rd December 2010: First portion of Relief Money WILL be paid by end of week say Democrats.

Second portion will be paid by end of January 2011.

http://reliefweb.int/node/379000

As far as the physical efforts are concerned Yingluck is working with the same civil servants in all of the provinces that failed to deal adequately with the floods last year - what makes you think they are going to be any more efficient this year with floods that are even worse than last year. She remarked upon this here; http://www.thailando...?DataID=1048094

[whybother]

Lets put this provision of relief efforts into perspective - as far as the compensation efforts by the previous government is concerned, they have a way to go yet.

4th August 2010 : DDPM warns 27 provinces of flashfloods, mudslides - Floods Start

http://reliefweb.int/node/363144

<snip>

As far as the physical efforts are concerned Yingluck is working with the same civil servants in all of the provinces that failed to deal adequately with the floods last year - what makes you think they are going to be any more efficient this year with floods that are even worse than last year. She remarked upon this here; http://www.thailando...?DataID=1048094

4th August 2010

All dams gear up to reserve water during rainy season

27th October 2010: Cabinet agrees budget to give flood relief

http://reliefweb.int/node/372495

The Cabinet has approved an additional flood-relief budget of 238 million baht to assist over 600,000 families affected by floods across the country.

[philw]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Come on guys, the people suffering most of the flood damages and devistation are mainly Red Shirts.. sweet revenge for burning down Bangkok... They voted in this government, the government installed the ministers, and the ministers are proving useless... anyone surprised..? I donated 3 of my wifes old bikinis and 2 pairs of the kids water-wings... hope it helps...

You must be pretty sick to enjoy other peoples flood sufferings.

Disgustingly so.

Edited October 10, 2011 by philw

[rubl]

As far as the physical efforts are concerned Yingluck is working with the same civil servants in all of the provinces that failed to deal adequately with the floods last year - what makes you think they are going to be any more efficient this year with floods that are even worse than last year. She remarked upon this here; http://www.thailando...?DataID=1048094

That article says

"She added that there is a structural problem, as authorities have always focused on their areas in charge, so as to save their province at the cost of others"

So basicly what she says is that where individual province authorities may function adequately, the co-ordination amongst provinces is lacking. The tendency to move power from the central government to local governors in provinces may need a bit a rethinking as far as how to retain an overview and ascertain a level of cooperation.

Mind you all this still has nothing to do with permanent flood prevention or minimalisation. That's the part where political will to make difficult decisions, long-term vision and continuation comes in

(PS I know it's not fair, but as far as problems are concerned it's ALWAYS the current government which is blamed. With successes the current government can take the credit. That may even things out )

Edited October 10, 2011 by rubl

[letitbe]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

hang on there Last government were only in power for what 2 years or so nd who was in power for 10 years or so before when sometnihg could have been done that ohhh Mr Taksin or his party

[letitbe]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Come on guys, the people suffering most of the flood damages and devistation are mainly Red Shirts.. sweet revenge for burning down Bangkok... They voted in this government, the government installed the ministers, and the ministers are proving useless... anyone surprised..? I donated 3 of my wifes old bikinis and 2 pairs of the kids water-wings... hope it helps...

I think your comment is outrageous! The people affected are kids, women, men, both Thai and Farang, independent of who they did vote for! You seem to lack any decency and manners! That's my personal comment

With regards to the ministers installed, they can not be blamed for all that happened! Not even the best new ministers can't deal with such a catastrophe, if their departments - for many years led by the Democrats - are not ready / prepared / willing to deal with such an event!

Or vice versa: Not even the worst minister installed by the new government could have stopped a well organized and ready department to deal with such a flood... and if their department is not ready, then the majority of the blame must go to the previous government. A minister can NOT undo and correct all the mistakes of a 3-y government in only 3 months.

well not to worry when Taksin comes back all will be well I agree 100% with op but ten you probably tihnk the governments plan to put 100 boats in river to push water out is a good example of this governments mental abilities.

[letitbe]

I think your comment is outrageous! The people affected are kids, women, men, both Thai and Farang, independent of who they did vote for! You seem to lack any decency and manners! That's my personal comment

With regards to the ministers installed, they can not be blamed for all that happened! Not even the best new ministers can't deal with such a catastrophe, if their departments - for many years led by the Democrats - are not ready / prepared / willing to deal with such an event!

Or vice versa: Not even the worst minister installed by the new government could have stopped a well organized and ready department to deal with such a flood... and if their department is not ready, then the majority of the blame must go to the previous government. A minister can NOT undo and correct all the mistakes of a 3-y government in only 3 months.

Do you mean Thaksin didn't fix all the problems? He was in charge for twice as long as the Democrats! And he's been on the phone to the current government non stop for the last 3 months. Surely he's been passing over his knowledge on how to deal with floods.

There is very little they could have done to stop the current flooding. There is probably very little that could have been done by any of the last few governments. Things should have been started more than 10 years ago to be able to deal with these current floods ... and even then, they probably wouldn't have been sufficient.

The problem being highlighted in the OP is the current government's "Relief Efforts" ... that is, what they have done to help people affected by the floods.

Too little. Too late.

Lets put this provision of relief efforts into perspective - as far as the compensation efforts by the previous government is concerned, they have a way to go yet.

4th August 2010 : DDPM warns 27 provinces of flashfloods, mudslides - Floods Start

http://reliefweb.int/node/363144

2 Months later.....................

27th October 2010: Cabinet agrees budget to give flood relief

http://reliefweb.int/node/372495

3rd November 2010: Government will pay relief money this week

http://reliefweb.int/node/374817

10th November 2010: Government admits delays in paying relief money - will now be paid by end of month

http://reliefweb.int/node/373541

16th November 2010: Head of National Bureau of Disaster Management reveals Disaster Recovery and Mitigation budget has been cut by 25 per cent on 2009 levels and equal to $1.25 per person - is not enough

http://reliefweb.int/node/374967

4 months after floods begin......................

23rd December 2010: First portion of Relief Money WILL be paid by end of week say Democrats.

Second portion will be paid by end of January 2011.

http://reliefweb.int/node/379000

As far as the physical efforts are concerned Yingluck is working with the same civil servants in all of the provinces that failed to deal adequately with the floods last year - what makes you think they are going to be any more efficient this year with floods that are even worse than last year. She remarked upon this here; http://www.thailando...?DataID=1048094

what more can someone say than maybe but Taksin and his party controlled Thailand for what 10+ years before dems and did no planning and wont do anything even after this since its hardly priority over getting the messiah back and giving him more of money he stole back and chance of stealing lots more. How naive some are

[letitbe]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

Come on guys, the people suffering most of the flood damages and devistation are mainly Red Shirts.. sweet revenge for burning down Bangkok... They voted in this government, the government installed the ministers, and the ministers are proving useless... anyone surprised..? I donated 3 of my wifes old bikinis and 2 pairs of the kids water-wings... hope it helps...

You must be pretty sick to enjoy other peoples flood sufferings.

Disgustingly so.

in case you dont know its called Karma or is it spelt carma and yes my mother in laws house is flooded and i feel a bit sorry for her actually more sorry for me because I will probably have to put up with her longer than normal but I told her its your fault you should not have voted red and added I had a dream and a ghost came to me telling me to tell her to never ever support evil Taksin and his lot again. Well at least thats one less vote for the evil one next time.

[wintermute]

Explaining everything away as karma is just an easy way for society and individuals to never take direct responsibility for anything.

[gregb]

My expectations are a little less political. I expect to see a coordinated effort by all government agencies toward minimizing the effects of the floods. I expect to see massive mobilization of civilian and gov't personnel to build barriers where homes, property and lives can be spared. I expect evacuations, maybe mandatory for areas that must be sacrificed.

I expect information to be given (preferably in English as well as Thai). All I know is that I live in an area that is likely to experience problems; according to the newspaper.

I expect to be told where to go before the floods hit, how to get there and what to bring. I would prefer to be told if I can drive there, will there be buses or should I wait until a helicopter comes and airlifts me from the roof.

I expect to know the forecast for rain, instead of having to look at the sky and to know if the flooding on the nearby road is just from a heavy rain, or is this the beginning of something bigger. I expect to not be standing up to my tits in water taking a poll about flood relief.

.....but then that's just me.

What you expect is irrelevant. What you will get is a truck coming by with the loudspeakers blaring telling you (in Thai only) that the area you are in is now a flood warning zone. They may additionally tell you when to expect major flooding to hit if they can predict it. They also told us electric services would be cut to the entire area when the water came. That is all. It will be up to you to query your neighbors and find out what that means, where the shelters are if any are available, what you should take, and when you should go. There is a hotline that someone will likely call to get that information and then share it with everyone else in your neighborhood.

[garrya]

Come on guys, you dont think this is an ordinary flooding do you? This is not something what anybody can stop easily. Who knows, when the last severe flooding like this, occured last time? Being impartial and seen how much this country is developed we cant expect more then what they do. I do see the willingness and the effort, but this is something like the disaster of the century. Nothing to do with political angle. Obviously, this must be a wake-up call for all the politicians in any parties.

Anybody out there to fill up a sand bag?

[New007]

Man-made disasters, yet the government wants that people build more houses or buy more cars!!!! All adds to the global warming. STOP freaking thinking about money and care the environment. Whose got the brains here? This is only the beginning. In Europe they had in the month of July and August as much rain as in one year in some parts. Wait for the following years to come.

[scorecard]

My expectations are a little less political. I expect to see a coordinated effort by all government agencies toward minimizing the effects of the floods. I expect to see massive mobilization of civilian and gov't personnel to build barriers where homes, property and lives can be spared. I expect evacuations, maybe mandatory for areas that must be sacrificed.

I expect information to be given (preferably in English as well as Thai). All I know is that I live in an area that is likely to experience problems; according to the newspaper.

I expect to be told where to go before the floods hit, how to get there and what to bring. I would prefer to be told if I can drive there, will there be buses or should I wait until a helicopter comes and airlifts me from the roof.

I expect to know the forecast for rain, instead of having to look at the sky and to know if the flooding on the nearby road is just from a heavy rain, or is this the beginning of something bigger. I expect to not be standing up to my tits in water taking a poll about flood relief.

.....but then that's just me.

What you expect is irrelevant. What you will get is a truck coming by with the loudspeakers blaring telling you (in Thai only) that the area you are in is now a flood warning zone. They may additionally tell you when to expect major flooding to hit if they can predict it. They also told us electric services would be cut to the entire area when the water came. That is all. It will be up to you to query your neighbors and find out what that means, where the shelters are if any are available, what you should take, and when you should go. There is a hotline that someone will likely call to get that information and then share it with everyone else in your neighborhood.

And 10 days back when the Ping River CM went over the banks massive numbers of houses had up to 2 metres of water in them for several days.

Our family doctor had 2 metres of water in his family home. No warnings whatever except what they could watch on TV which gave no clear pictures, no govt or any other officials came by to the area to give warnings, nobody came when the big water hit, nobody came by to check whether there was danger from electric cables etc etc. Nobody came by to see if anybody was stranded, needed food or water, nothing. After it went down the nearest main road was cleaned of most of the mud with large scoops, but nothing done down the smaller sois. The doctor drove the family car to a higher area before the big water hit, and he disabled the engine because he feared the car would be stolen.

[scorecard]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

This is true, all parties / governments over the last 40 years should have taken action to prepare for this matter, and don't forget that thaksins gangs had many years to start to address these matters and did nothing.

[rubl]

As far as the physical efforts are concerned Yingluck is working with the same civil servants in all of the provinces that failed to deal adequately with the floods last year - what makes you think they are going to be any more efficient this year with floods that are even worse than last year. She remarked upon this here; http://www.thailando...?DataID=1048094

This civil servant must be the exception proving the rule

"Nakhon Sawan is proving to be one of the best-prepared provinces in dealing with its flood problems - with government officials, authorities and residents all taking part in defending it against the threat of inundation.

The preparation started two months ago, utilising the Internet and social media.

In early August, Governor Chairote Meedaeng called a meeting with related agencies to discuss an "urgent agenda" preparing the province for the water run-off after the upper North was affected by the Nok-Ten storm."

[serenitynow]

Big problem being that they do not know how to take honest non objective polls in Thailand.

I agree. Specially, whatever you think of the current government, it is not fair to make them responsible for all the failures happening right now. It was not them setting up emergency organisations, relief agencies etc. It was not them not implementing policies and procedures for effectively dealing with such a crisis during the last years... it was not them not building additional dams, canals etc. during the last years...

That's true, but it is the current government that got to work on flood relief a month late. That's an eternity as far as natural disasters go.