Corruption Remains Thailand's Most Vulnerable Factor

[webfact]

Corruption remains Thailand's most vulnerable factor

BANGKOK, Sept 6 – The Yingluck Shinawatra government has failed to deliver its promised crackdown on corruption, according to a poll at Bangkok's Dhurakij Pundit University (DPU)

DPU research centre director Kiat-anan Luankaew said the government’s anti-corruption performance received 4.6 of a total 10 points, describing corruption as a deep-rooted culture in Thai society, particularly in the political and public sectors.

The only anti-corruption alternative left is to strengthen the public sector, in cooperation with the media, to strenuously follow the performance of politicians and government officials while educating the public on the cancerous nature of corruption.

“Lessons learned from Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong prove that it is a curable problem if we persistently fight against it,” he said.

The survey on corruption in Thailand was conducted Aug 26-Sept 4 and announced Wednesday on the eve of National Anti-Corruption Day. A total of 1,028 people in 20 provinces were questioned in the poll.

Asked if corruption is a vital problem for Thailand, 88.3 per cent of the respondents agreed that it was serious while 7.2 per cent said it was not and 4.5 per cent said they were not sure.

In dividing graft to three categories: political, state and private sectors, 81.9 per cent, 72.5 per cent and 54.7 per cent of the respondents said corruption has increased in the political, state and private sectors.

In addition, the respondents predicted increasing corruption rates next year with 72.2 per cent, 65.5 per cent and 50.1 per cent of respondents seeing more corruption in the political, state and private sectors. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-06

[fareastguy]

The survey on corruption in Thailand was conducted Aug 26-Sept 4 and announced Wednesday on the eve of National Anti-Corruption Day. A total of 1,028 people in 20 provinces were questioned in the poll.

Rough maths this equates to 5.14 people every day in each of the 20 provinces polled... must have been a long questionnaire !!

[Jane Doe]

Have I ever popped into some kind of official in Thailand who was not corrupt?

Hmm...

No.

[drdoom6996]

Why would anybody want to stop corruption? Everybodies getting theur piece of the pie. How do you stop that when it starts at the very very top?

[bobobo]

drdoom agree with You. Let's face it it's impossible. "if You can't beat them join them" sort of

[BookMan]

The rich and powerful are not going to give up their spots on the top rungs of the ladder. To get there in the first place a lot of them would have had to be involved in some questionable dealings along the way.

Now they are there, they are making the decisions and calling the shots, probably pulling in an income from those below them in various ways. They are not going to just cut themselves off at the neck by having a crackdown on corruption, their very lifeblood..

[billd766]

The biggest problem with corruption is that there is no political will to stop it.

Everything else stems from that position.

Stop it at the very top and it WILL filter down.

[AleG]

The biggest problem with corruption is that there is no political will to stop it.

Everything else stems from that position.

Stop it at the very top and it WILL filter down.

But with Corruption and Nepotism lovechild at the wheel chances of a top-bottom solution are nil.

[Phil Conners]

It was as bad in Singapore and Hong Kong in the past, but they managed to stop it. Why not here?

[billd766]

It was as bad in Singapore and Hong Kong in the past, but they managed to stop it. Why not here?

Because the political will WAS there and the first thing they cleared was the police force.

After that it gets easier.

[pepi2005]

I would rather say "Corruption Remains Thailand's Most Reliable Factor".

[peebee]

I happen to be an optimist and believe the situation will improve, although this will be gradual and may take a decade or longer to make significant improvements. The reasons for my optimism are:

1) There is far more comment and questioning in the media and by individuals in Thailand than has occurred in the past, so the corruption topic is now a very public issue. The clearing of illegal resort developments in forest reserves is an important step, regardless of any hiccups along the way. These are significant steps and I am hopeful they will continue.

2) Better education will in time result in more people understanding why this is a problem and how it affects them and the country negatively. Importantly, the mass of poorer people who have little chance to benefit from corruption but have great political power because of their numbers, will learn to recognise they are being screwed and demand change.

3) Much closer economic interdependence of countries means that other countries and companies are more aware of what is 'going on' and able to request and pressure changes. There are many more international laws and policies that have to be met now.

4) Increasing competition between countries as well as regional economic groupings and trade agreements will require changes in Thailand if it is to continue to progress and be part of these groups.

5) The power of the internet and mobile phones provides individuals and groups with unprecedented ability to spread information and ideas, ask inconvenient questions and publicise issues.

The world is changing very fast and countries such as Thailand that arguably previously had a low profile in relation to matters of concern such as political stability and economic management, including corruption, are now much more in the spotlight and can no longer be ignored. However, we non-Thais, when making critical comments, should recongise the profound cultural changes being required of Thai society. Importantly, we also should remember the significant corruption, favouritism and back-scratching that exists in our own countries before we throw stones.

[OzMick]

PB, you are in the minority. What makes you think that education is improving?

[notime]

Have I ever popped into some kind of official in Thailand who was not corrupt?

Hmm...

No.

I second that. Once I went to the Government Anti-corruption Office in Bkk. It took me a long time to find it. It's in the area of many splendid, huge government buildings towards Don Muang airport and then West. I didn't even know before that Thai government had such enormous, new offices. But that institution wasn't housed in any of them. I finally found it in an nearby commercial building. It occupied a small office space on the first floor and nobody in the building even knew it was there. It was staffed with few young people and the boss was nowhere around. One of the first things they told me, there were very very underpaid. I felt like offering them some encouragements at first but on the second thought I just left. Lesson learned: somebody "up-there" wanted to have an anti-corruption office but not for real. Just so they can talk about it.

[peebee]

OzMick, I have never been in Thai schools so have no first hand knowledge of this area although I have often read of various issues and concerns with Thai education. No doubt there are some serious issues to address if Thailand is to improve its competitive position in the world and the lives of its people. However education isn't just about schools or about formal programs, and I also am viewing things over the past 40 years. There are lots of things that could be discussed when talking about education I guess but a couple of things do come to mind.

I read a lot lamenting about the standard of written and spoken English. No doubt further improvements are needed but in the early 1970s there were bugger all people who spoke English in Thailand. There has been a massive increase in the number of Thai people, all over the country, who can now read/write and speak English, and particularly young people. Yes they could do better but that will come with time, continuing and improved teaching and, importantly, as younger people realise the importance of communicating in English and they work in environments where English is spoken. The increasing use of the internet (with more affordable and common computers, iPad-type devices and smart phones) and satellite TV (with English-speaking programs) are having and will continue to be of great assistance in this regard. Finally, it seems to me that the government, media and business do recognise the need for improvements in education and in English competency. While statements by politicians do not of course necessarily result in more resources appearing, at least in the short term, public statements recognising the issue is an important step. Business will be an important driver in this area.

Secondly, over the past couple of decades there has been a huge increase in the number of Thais studying, living and travelling overseas. In my family, in my generation (age group 50 to 70), only my wife and her younger brother have lived and studied overseas but 8 (so far) of our Thai nieces and nephews have lived and studied at colleges and universities in Australia, UK, USA, Canada, Singapore and Korea. This sort of overseas experience is no longer unusual. This younger generation is therefore much better educated than their parents, they are much more capable with English, they are better in tune with what is happening in other countries and in business. I think we will see a much greater impact on Thailand from this generation over the coming 10 to 20 years as they progress to more senior and decision-making roles.

Thirdly, my perception and understanding is that there are now more schools, more children in schools, and more children progressing to higher levels in schools and through technical colleges and universities than ever before. This is certainly the case in my wife's family. Even if the standards aren't as high as we would like, this situation has still got to be an improvement that will, in time, provide better outcomes for the country. People will know more, they will make better decisions, they will achieve more and they will expect more, including better service and outcomes from business, government and political leaders.

I am not saying things are great or as great as we would like, but they are improving and they are in many ways better than they were 40 years ago. Whether this will be sufficient to be seriously competitive in business with other countries in coming years and whether they will be able to get on top of issues such as corruption and political instability within a generation or two remains to be seen. I think there are good grounds for optimism, but addressing these latter issues will take time because they involve changes to fundamental aspects of Thai society and culture.

Everyone has a valid viewpoint based on their experiences. I think life is better when viewed with a positive outlook.