Pouring Money Into A Bottomless Pit Of Corruption: Thai Editorial

[lizardtongue]

Asia is corrupt and Thailand is a part of that and always will be, given the opportunity where (if given the chance) would you start? I am sure like me many posters have given this some thought? Personally I cannot come up with a practical answer!

For instance if you "Got rid of the Police and politicians" would the people taking their place be any less corrupt? As the article states it is an accepted way of life, the Thais (if they were being honest) may not like it but are ready to accept it.

The question is not how many Thai's in promonment positions are corrupt it is how many are not? That is from the top down!

[Thai at Heart]

All these Nation editorials are nice but the bottom line is that it is the old money that is to blame. The people protected by the likes of the Nation newspaper. Their sacred institutions are all involved. When judges are exposed on Youtube the Nation is the fist to shut up. When the army is corrupted to the bone to a level that they are not even able to capture even by chance or accident bombmakers they keep silent. When Rohingya are trafficked the Nation comes up with a bogus forensic expert with strange hair who claims that Rohingya were trained by extremist because she figured out with a bogus bombscanner that explosive residue was on their boats. All the actions of the Nation editors are focused on keeping the people in power who are in charge for 100 years and who have stolen everything you can think of.

The damage done by the Nation reporting is therefore even bigger than the money lost because of corruption. The media keep crooks were they are.

Post of the week IMO.

Monty Python still lives on.

As far as how graft money is transferred abroad the best person to ask is Mr T. When you can order a bank to provide & then increase a loan to a neighbour, how difficult was it to order a bank to make a billion or two morph into an offshore account?

What you fail to realise is that they have all been at it, apparently legally for ever. Any company in the agriculture export business maintains an invoicing entity offshore for transfer pricing.

[spidermike007]

Ok, for over a week we have read various reports from the Nation and elsewhere concerning graft, corruption and illegal movements of money.

Ok, all well and good.

And now all that's needed is for the Thai authorities to start the appropriate legal and criminal law processes to finally rid Thailand of this cancer and imprison those responsible.

By the way, at lunchtime yesterday, I saw three policeman - in open view - receive a pay off from a vendor who sells copied dvds on the street and help themselves to a selection of their choice.

Work it out.

Thailand is one of the few nations in the world that does not imprison people for corruption. At least Malaysia, the Philippines, China, India, Indonesia, and even to a minor extent Laos, is putting up a fight. Only Thailand, Cambodia, and Burma are not doing anything about this plague, and that does not look like it will change anytime soon. It is possible the Thais simply lack the courage for waging this battle? While Malaysia is locking people up, who are in important positions, on a weekly basis, and China is executing people for corruption, how many years have gone by since an important figure has been locked up here?

[Thai at Heart]

Ok, for over a week we have read various reports from the Nation and elsewhere concerning graft, corruption and illegal movements of money.

Ok, all well and good.

And now all that's needed is for the Thai authorities to start the appropriate legal and criminal law processes to finally rid Thailand of this cancer and imprison those responsible.

By the way, at lunchtime yesterday, I saw three policeman - in open view - receive a pay off from a vendor who sells copied dvds on the street and help themselves to a selection of their choice.

Work it out.

Thailand is one of the few nations in the world that does not imprison people for corruption. At least Malaysia, the Philippines, China, India, Indonesia, and even to a minor extent Laos, is putting up a fight. Only Thailand, Cambodia, and Burma are not doing anything about this plague, and that does not look like it will change anytime soon. It is possible the Thais simply lack the courage for waging this battle? While Malaysia is locking people up, who are in important positions, on a weekly basis, and China is executing people for corruption, how many years have gone by since an important figure has been locked up here?

There has never been a separation between government and business here. They are so entwined it is impossible to separate.

Families run companies and have positions in government. There is no concept such as conflict of interest. Joe average believes if someone is rich, they are worthy, but no one wonders or questions how they achieved this wealth.

[ataloss]

Th at H: 'Any company in the agriculture export business maintains an invoicing entity offshore for transfer pricing.'

How exactly does that work? And only aggi?

You sell it to yourself, say HKong, at a reduced rate to incur low taxes in country of origin; then forward from your shell HKong company at a higher rate? If so the taxes in HKong or wherever the shell company is set up must be significantly lower?

Edited January 31, 2013 by ataloss

[Ricardo]

You sell at a reduced-price to a company in the BVI, or some other tax-haven, where there is little supervision & no tax to pay at all, and they then sell to the eventual-customer overseas at the full contract-price, the profit (apart from whatever element you wish to show in the Thai-subsidiary) thus remains offshore, all totally legal.

Or so I've been told.

[Thai at Heart]

You sell at a reduced-price to a company in the BVI, or some other tax-haven, where there is little supervision & no tax to pay at all, and they then sell to the eventual-customer overseas at the full contract-price, the profit (apart from whatever element you wish to show in the Thai-subsidiary) thus remains offshore, all totally legal.

Or so I've been told.

Funny how they have jumped all over starbucks for something similar in the uk. Seems that transfer pricing is the hot topic.

[beautifulthailand99]

Mai Bpen Rai - mai mee benha.

Accept accept

[KKvampire]

How many times does it need pointing out. "Thailand doesn't want to end corruption" PERIOD

[Jawnie]

I'm still waiting to hear or read about the Thai government implementing under-cover sting operations with suspected corrupt officials and business leaders. Under-cover sting operations are highly effective and would work well in Thailand. But, for the two years I've been in Thailand, I've never heard of the idea even suggested by corruption 'fighters'. It would be easy to do, highly effective, and would put corrupt officials on notice. They would never see it coming and the public deserves to see a few 'perp walks' by corrupt officials.

[Pimay1]

I'm still waiting to hear or read about the Thai government implementing under-cover sting operations with suspected corrupt officials and business leaders. Under-cover sting operations are highly effective and would work well in Thailand. But, for the two years I've been in Thailand, I've never heard of the idea even suggested by corruption 'fighters'. It would be easy to do, highly effective, and would put corrupt officials on notice. They would never see it coming and the public deserves to see a few 'perp walks' by corrupt officials.

You can be here for twenty two more years and you will never hear or read about it except maybe from Chuvit exposing a casino that according to DPM Chalerm doesn't exist. Edited January 31, 2013 by Pimay1

[jayboy]

All these Nation editorials are nice but the bottom line is that it is the old money that is to blame. The people protected by the likes of the Nation newspaper. Their sacred institutions are all involved. When judges are exposed on Youtube the Nation is the fist to shut up. When the army is corrupted to the bone to a level that they are not even able to capture even by chance or accident bombmakers they keep silent. When Rohingya are trafficked the Nation comes up with a bogus forensic expert with strange hair who claims that Rohingya were trained by extremist because she figured out with a bogus bombscanner that explosive residue was on their boats. All the actions of the Nation editors are focused on keeping the people in power who are in charge for 100 years and who have stolen everything you can think of.

The damage done by the Nation reporting is therefore even bigger than the money lost because of corruption. The media keep crooks were they are.

"the bottom line is that it is the old money that is to blame."

And there is no corruption in "new money"?

No I think the point being made is that the accusations are very selective.If for example The Nation published detailed exposes of the massive corruption of the Thai armed forces and other establisment sources (including corporate ones), one would respect its views rather more.But the target is a real one - corruption in Thailand is endemic and weakens the country.I though Khun Abhisit was well positioned to lead a drive against it (because he is free of this type of scandal) - perhaps he will in the future.There is a complicating factor in the code of Thai politics in that some of those who berate "corruption" are just finding an acceptable way of berating elected politicians and representative democracy.One has to be somewhat sophisticated about these matters.