Govt 'not keen' on World Expo bid
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The government did not show any interest in pursuing the bid to host World Expo 2020, said Kriengkrai Kanjanapokin, co-chief executive officer of Index Creative Village, speaking about Thailand's removal from the candidate list.

He said there had been signs since January this year that the government was ignoring this project. During a visit of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) enquiry mission team to Ayutthaya to check the country's readiness, the government had expressed an ''ignorance'' about the bidding to them.

The team met Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and also Deputy Prime Minister Plodprasop Suraswadi and Foreign Minister Surapong Towichukchaikul.

''After they met the prime minister, the BIE officials said she did not say anything about the project. Neither did the two [ministers],'' he said.

Following their return, the BIE sent two letters to the government to ask about its commitment to the bidding, but there was no response from the Thai side. Then, it sent a third letter to inform the government that it had removed Thailand from the candidate list, Kriengkrai revealed.

Currently, four candidates are in contention - Brazil, Dubai, Russia and Turkey.

Kriengkrai said it is sad that Thailand had missed a big opportunity to show off its potential on the global stage. There are also doubts raised by the private sector about the government's thinking and why it has ruined this opportunity unreasonably.

The Thailand Convention Exhibition Bureau played a supporting role in this bidding and spent Bt400 million on preparations.

Brainstorming

"We [the company] invited professionals from different fields such as academic, creative and advertising to brainstorm and find out ideas, without paying them. They were willing to do so," he said.

Also, A Com from the US, an event organiser of the Olympic Games, was hired to study the feasibility of the project. He said his company had a role in helping coordinate them since the beginning.

Initially, the study found an investment of Bt30 billion was required for infrastructure such as transport, public utility and buying land near Bangsai Arts and Craft Center. The total land to be used was projected at 1,500 rai.


-- The Nation 2013-06-14

They snubbed it because it was Aphisit's idea, plain and simple.

Saying that, I would have liked to have seen them try to set up something of that scale. Would have been a bloody shambles no doubt. Remember Futsal?

I think I'm right in saying a lot of money was spent on feasibility etc. so at what point did the government decide they weren't interested and perhaps have stopped the waste or is that too simple ?

No immediate benefit, no happen.

Thailand Convention Exhibition Bureau played a supporting role in this bidding and spent Bt400 million on preparations

huh What ?

That figure came out of the blue adn seems quite beyond belief

No immediate benefit, no happen.

" We might not be around then so nothing in it for us, file and forget. "

The place was under 2 metres of water only a while back.

Could you imagine if it happened again?

I think I'm right in saying a lot of money was spent on feasibility etc. so at what point did the government decide they weren't interested and perhaps have stopped the waste or is that too simple ?

Correct. I noticed that the other day in the first reports on this topic to where several tens of millions of Baht (cannot be stuffed going back to look for exact amount - will leave that for the 'this wonderful Pheu thai government' ass lickers to do in dispute) had gone to "public awareness." So several tens of millions of Baht are grafted off to where? for an event that the government had no interest in?

LoS - Land of Scams

LoS - Land of Smoke & mirrors

Hub Thailand - Hub of corruption and incompentance.

Amazing Thailand - only amazement is that this level of incompetance and corruption just carries on bigger and brighter with no check in sight.

There is another thread on this subject

Bt400 million on preparations ??????????

dinners, hookers, drugs, more dinners, some cars, expensive hotels ????????

400 million !!!!

The Thailand Convention Exhibition Bureau played a supporting role in this bidding and spent Bt400 million on preparations.

Are you serious!????! Glad to see that everyone in Thailand is so rich that it can afford to waste so much taxpayer money.

The Thailand Convention Exhibition Bureau played a supporting role in this bidding and spent Bt400 million on preparations.

I could have achieved the same result for 10th of that!

Look at the other thread and you will see expo's have in the past been most profitable

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/646467-govt-must-explain-why-it-let-world-expo-plan-founder-thai-editorial/page-2#entry6506384

I can understand the government having been unenthusiastic, the idea having been not-invented-in-Dubai, and the B400-million having been milked spent on preparation.

But wouldn't it have been more-businesslike (or even merely-polite) to have answered one of BIE's two letters, or even to have given them the change-of-decision, while the PM & Ministers were meeting them face-to-face in January ?

I suspect that this was a natural Thai reluctance to give negative news, better to let it die a natural death, and hope that there was no loss-of-face when it finally happened. Oopsie !

I can understand the government having been unenthusiastic, the idea having been not-invented-in-Dubai, and the B400-million having been milked spent on preparation.

But wouldn't it have been more-businesslike (or even merely-polite) to have answered one of BIE's two letters, or even to have given them the change-of-decision, while the PM & Ministers were meeting them face-to-face in January ?

I suspect that this was a natural Thai reluctance to give negative news, better to let it die a natural death, and hope that there was no loss-of-face when it finally happened. Oopsie !

Quite correct. The respectful thing to do would have been to just tell them that Thailand did not wish to proceed. More loss of face to be told you have been disqualified I would have thought.

Speaking on behalf of the government, I believe the answer would be, "Expo sexpo, we don't think anyone would want to come to an expo. I think we would rather spend a similar amount of failed schemes such as trying again with Bangkok Fashion City (killing the successful Elle Fashion week), Thai Elite Card (<2,000 paid members at a cost of marketing probably reaching close to 1b already), nuclear power plants research even though the rest of the world is turning away from it, more animal safaris which Plodprasop can propose forms a banquet of endangered species dishes, bidding for a formula 1 race in a nonsensical location, perhaps bidding again to buy an EPL football team, water management for the Thai people except for them not to play any role in commenting on the plan, transportation plans except for no actual logistics firms or public to comment on the plan, buying rice so it can sit in a shed rotting, reclaiming a huge amount of the Gulf of Thailand for no reason since obviously Thailand has run out of land (well except for all the land everywhere which is not used), checking once again if we can move the capital to Nakhon Nowhere and finally perhaps checking on whether we can launch some of new paradigm which no one in the world has ever heard of, basically we will be the hub of [insert random word here]."

I think I'm right in saying a lot of money was spent on feasibility etc. so at what point did the government decide they weren't interested and perhaps have stopped the waste or is that too simple ?

The Government decided they were not interested the minute they were elected.

I think. they might not have known about it. They were more inte4rested in getting elected than they were about Thailand

I believe they made a mistake in the head line. (whats new)

It should have read

Thaksin not keen' on World Expo bid

Perhaps they want to concentrate their efforts on getting to stage the Winter Olympics in Udon Thai.