PM: Corrupt officials in rice scheme will be severely punished

[bigbamboo]

Its amazing what they will say when polls show that the majority of Thais believe the PTP politicians should pay back all losses from this scam rather than the tax payers.

PS: If as they claim only HB 352 billion has been spent why does the BAAC claim its owed 600 billion baht......

"Deputy Finance Minister Thanusak Lek-uthai, who also chairs the executive board at Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), revealed at the Cabinet's mobile meeting yesterday that the BAAC has already transferred to farmers participating in the rice-pledging scheme more than Bt600 billion, which is higher than the Bt500 billion budget set by the government for the scheme." http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Varathep-to-collate-rice-pledging-data-30208010.html

Perhaps they are assuming that politicians are not taxpayers....?

[NongKhaiKid]

Yes, Yes Yingluck this is another " heard it all before " story about dealing with corruption and as usual it's not likely, or believed, anymore than all the other assurances.

Nice too you tell provincial governors to explain the rice pledging scheme, does this mean they have more information on the real figures than central government ? If so how can it be ?

Once again the PM abrogates responsibility as supposed head of government and proves she not even a puppet.

[Bellweather]

Same insincere message, different insincere voice although this one may not even understand what she said.

I wonder if those who tell the PM what to say and do will even bother trying to explain to her how this works - she makes a threat that makes everyone laugh, so later to prove the government are on it some small fish in this very big pond will be " caught " and with the necessary publicity.

Meanwhile the big fish will carry on as usual and the government will continue as usual dodging the issue of the massive losses and swearing blind the scheme is a raging success.

[Noistar]

"Ms Yingluck said the pledging price for paddy, reduced by the National Rice Policy Committee ..."

... of which she just happens to be the chairperson.

Can just picture the blank expression - "am I?"

[Noistar]

Same insincere message, different insincere voice although this one may not even understand what she said.

I wonder if those who tell the PM what to say and do will even bother trying to explain to her how this works - she makes a threat that makes everyone laugh, so later to prove the government are on it some small fish in this very big pond will be " caught " and with the necessary publicity.

Meanwhile the big fish will carry on as usual and the government will continue as usual dodging the issue of the massive losses and swearing blind the scheme is a raging success.

Stop whinging. They're only doing what the country demanded of them in their electoral victory.

(Or something like that!)

[kurnell]

I'd be happy if that idiot leader just said that they have to steal a certain amount, that is what they do, but they are willing to reduce it

[ABCer]

Time for some scapegoats! Watch three labourers get 5 years each for stealing 100 bags of rice, ............investigation closed.

Surely every Ambassador stationed within this country must gag at all this BS going on.

I often wonder if Thaksin picked Yingluck because she is actually so totally clueless. First in the queue for looks, last for brains. She just seems to believe what she is told. She needs to read and understand this, as it appears to be happening constantly:

The Plan.

In the beginning was the Plan.

And then came the Assumptions.

And the Assumptions were without form.

And darkness was upon the face of the Workers.

And they spoke among themselves, saying, "It is a crock of shit, and it stinketh."

And the workers went unto their Supervisors and said, "It is a pail of dung, and none may abide the odour thereof."

And the Supervisors went unto their Managers, saying, "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide by it."

And the Managers went unto their Directors, saying, "It is a vessel of fertiliser, and none may abide its strength."

And the Directors spoke amongst themselves, saying one to another, "It contains that which aids plant growth, and it is very strong."

And the Directors then went onto the Vice Presidents, saying unto them, "It promotes growth and is very powerful."

And the Vice Presidents went unto the President, saying unto him, "This new plan will actively promote the growth and vigour of the company; with powerful effects."

And the President looked upon the Plan, and saw that it was good.

And the Plan became Policy.

This is How Shit Happens.

Nicely said, but I prefer a shorter version:

Shit does not happen. It comes from <deleted>.

One reservation, though, - I do not blame personally Yingluck.

[Bellweather]

Same insincere message, different insincere voice although this one may not even understand what she said.

I wonder if those who tell the PM what to say and do will even bother trying to explain to her how this works - she makes a threat that makes everyone laugh, so later to prove the government are on it some small fish in this very big pond will be " caught " and with the necessary publicity.

Meanwhile the big fish will carry on as usual and the government will continue as usual dodging the issue of the massive losses and swearing blind the scheme is a raging success.

Stop whinging. They're only doing what the country demanded of them in their electoral victory.

(Or something like that!)

I'll consider but only consider stopping if you consider spelling the subject correctly as in WHINGEING... LOL

[OzMick]

"she said .......... it could not be said if it was a losing or profitable scheme."

Her brother stated 9 months ago that the scheme would reap 300% profit. At the same time, it was pointed out that the Shinawatra's own millions of rai of rice farming land. (BP Business, 25/9/12).

I await the PM's declaration that neither she nor her family have profited from this scam.

[Noistar]

Same insincere message, different insincere voice although this one may not even understand what she said.

I wonder if those who tell the PM what to say and do will even bother trying to explain to her how this works - she makes a threat that makes everyone laugh, so later to prove the government are on it some small fish in this very big pond will be " caught " and with the necessary publicity.

Meanwhile the big fish will carry on as usual and the government will continue as usual dodging the issue of the massive losses and swearing blind the scheme is a raging success.

Stop whinging. They're only doing what the country demanded of them in their electoral victory.

(Or something like that!)

I'll consider but only consider stopping if you consider spelling the subject correctly as in WHINGEING... LOL

I tried - but the spell-checker changed it- perhaps it's American! LOL

[smedly]

260 billion baht later, she sure has a handle on things

and just as she is making that speech all she had to do was look around her at the noses extending

comedy show called PTP

[ramrod711]

PM: Corrupt officials in rice scheme will be severely punished

Don't swallow that elmer, that's horsesh-t.

[Thai at Heart]

Now the governors can explain the price cut.

[AleG]

Obfuscating the figures of this scheme for personal benefit surely seems like corruption to me, is she and her cabinet going to hand themselves to the police?

As an example, the Commerce Minister trying to pass a loss figure about 4 times or so lower than the "official" one.

I repeat the equation:

Expenditure of public money + no transparency + no accountability = corruption.

Yingluck's desperate attempts at distancing herself of the scheme are particularly pathetic, "those other people are reducing the pledging price, I'm just the chairwoman of the agency", "I knew nothing", "really, it doesn't matter if it makes or looses money", "this other people are going to explain it all", etc, etc...

[EvilDrSomkid]

"she said .......... it could not be said if it was a losing or profitable scheme."

Her brother stated 9 months ago that the scheme would reap 300% profit. At the same time, it was pointed out that the Shinawatra's own millions of rai of rice farming land. (BP Business, 25/9/12).

I await the PM's declaration that neither she nor her family have profited from this scam.

Let's not forget that this scheme was never intended to be profitable to the government. Everybody knows that.

It was meant to subsidize rice farmers. Their constituency.

Conflict of interest does not exist in this country. It's just good business.

Edited June 20, 2013 by EvilDrSomkid

[Thai at Heart]

Would love to know how much time, or cost incurred to get paddy rice down from 20% moisture to 15%. Because if the farmers are being penalised this much due to this issue, presumably, there is a cheap and easy solution. If can't be that difficult to do.

[OzMick]

"she said .......... it could not be said if it was a losing or profitable scheme."

Her brother stated 9 months ago that the scheme would reap 300% profit. At the same time, it was pointed out that the Shinawatra's own millions of rai of rice farming land. (BP Business, 25/9/12).

I await the PM's declaration that neither she nor her family have profited from this scam.

Let's not forget that this scheme was never intended to be profitable to the government. Everybody knows that.

It was meant to subsidize rice farmers. Their constituency.

Conflict of interest does not exist in this country. It's just good business.

"It was meant to subsidize rice farmers. Their constituency."

That was the stated aim, which bought their votes. That this scam continued despite that stated aim singularly failing indicates to me that it was merely a facade behind which lay a scam to rip off the public purse. That portion of allocated funds which actually reached farmers was used to pay increased rents to wealthy landowners, and the Shinawatras are some of Thailand's largest land owners.

[ezzra]

"severely punished" yeah, moved to do nothing all day with full pay "inactive post"

and their tea/coffee privileges will be severely curtailed... what a croak...

[GAZZPA]

Time for some scapegoats! Watch three labourers get 5 years each for stealing 100 bags of rice, ............investigation closed.

Surely every Ambassador stationed within this country must gag at all this BS going on.

I often wonder if Thaksin picked Yingluck because she is actually so totally clueless. First in the queue for looks, last for brains. She just seems to believe what she is told. She needs to read and understand this, as it appears to be happening constantly:

The Plan.

In the beginning was the Plan.

And then came the Assumptions.

And the Assumptions were without form.

And darkness was upon the face of the Workers.

And they spoke among themselves, saying, "It is a crock of shit, and it stinketh."

And the workers went unto their Supervisors and said, "It is a pail of dung, and none may abide the odour thereof."

And the Supervisors went unto their Managers, saying, "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide by it."

And the Managers went unto their Directors, saying, "It is a vessel of fertiliser, and none may abide its strength."

And the Directors spoke amongst themselves, saying one to another, "It contains that which aids plant growth, and it is very strong."

And the Directors then went onto the Vice Presidents, saying unto them, "It promotes growth and is very powerful."

And the Vice Presidents went unto the President, saying unto him, "This new plan will actively promote the growth and vigour of the company; with powerful effects."

And the President looked upon the Plan, and saw that it was good.

And the Plan became Policy.

This is How Shit Happens.

hahahaha,, like it. Very funny. I have only been living in Thailand for about a year and i am still amazed at the complete nonsense that goes on,, you sum it up nicely.

[slapout]

Welll she could start with the people who have been throwing out false numbers, on costs, source of pledged rice, amount of rice in storage (20,000 and 15,000bht./ton) storage cost, etc. Thailand has laws on the books for just about any/everything, so it should be no problem finding criminal charges to go with.

Then to make it real upfront, show the bant amount paid to the individual landowner/farmer, amount paid to millers, amount to storage owners, total outlay in monies todate,etc.and finally explain why the hell Chaleum/RTP are involved in this program.

Edited June 20, 2013 by slapout

[ricardofel]

What more can I say, everyone has already said it........ok, I'll say it...."what a crock of sh..........t"...typical Thailand bs.

[Wavefloater]

Oh stop it Yingluck!!! It's getting ridiculous. Nobody believes all these words big brother puts in your mouth anymore. I'm beginning to wonder if Thaksin is taking the pi** with little sister and intentionally making her look the fool.

[lostmebike]

I didn't even read the article.

I saw the headline 'PM: Corrupt officials in rice scheme will be severely punished' and felt sick to my stomach.

calling kettle pot the black

Rearrange the words to create a better headline!

[lostmebike]

Oh stop it Yingluck!!! It's getting ridiculous. Nobody believes all these words big brother puts in your mouth anymore. I'm beginning to wonder if Thaksin is taking the pi** with little sister and intentionally making her look the fool.

Totally agree Mr Floater

It's come to the point now where one seriously questions the intelligence of the speaker. Is the speaker not aware of how ludicrous some of her 'announcements' are becoming?

[winstonc]

Time for some scapegoats! Watch three labourers get 5 years each for stealing 100 bags of rice, ............investigation closed.

Surely every Ambassador stationed within this country must gag at all this BS going on.

I often wonder if Thaksin picked Yingluck because she is actually so totally clueless. First in the queue for looks, last for brains. She just seems to believe what she is told. She needs to read and understand this, as it appears to be happening constantly:

The Plan.

In the beginning was the Plan.

And then came the Assumptions.

And the Assumptions were without form.

And darkness was upon the face of the Workers.

And they spoke among themselves, saying, "It is a crock of shit, and it stinketh."

And the workers went unto their Supervisors and said, "It is a pail of dung, and none may abide the odour thereof."

And the Supervisors went unto their Managers, saying, "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide by it."

And the Managers went unto their Directors, saying, "It is a vessel of fertiliser, and none may abide its strength."

And the Directors spoke amongst themselves, saying one to another, "It contains that which aids plant growth, and it is very strong."

And the Directors then went onto the Vice Presidents, saying unto them, "It promotes growth and is very powerful."

And the Vice Presidents went unto the President, saying unto him, "This new plan will actively promote the growth and vigour of the company; with powerful effects."

And the President looked upon the Plan, and saw that it was good.

And the Plan became Policy.

This is How Shit Happens.

Nicely said, but I prefer a shorter version:

Shit does not happen. It comes from <deleted>.

One reservation, though, - I do not blame personally Yingluck.

shes the pm you cant get any higher,,who do you blame,,??,,,,seriously bad post,,

[Mosha]

Its amazing what they will say when polls show that the majority of Thais believe the PTP politicians should pay back all losses from this scam rather than the tax payers.

PS: If as they claim only HB 352 billion has been spent why does the BAAC claim its owed 600 billion baht......

"Deputy Finance Minister Thanusak Lek-uthai, who also chairs the executive board at Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), revealed at the Cabinet's mobile meeting yesterday that the BAAC has already transferred to farmers participating in the rice-pledging scheme more than Bt600 billion, which is higher than the Bt500 billion budget set by the government for the scheme." http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Varathep-to-collate-rice-pledging-data-30208010.html

They didn't get the skype call.

[jcb2001]

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra vowed to take “ultimate” legal action against those found cheating in the rice pledging scheme.

She will stamp her feet while waving her arms around and screeching in a high pitch squeel, that will teach them.

The programme has greatly improved the country’s rice production

But not distribution due to the rice being above the going market rate, thereby making it all but unmarketable.

Thai economics at its best. I wonder how many MPs and cabinet members have actually taken a formal class in economics.

[SICHONSTEVE]

Well I guess that proves what a lot of people already suspected.... Yingluck really does just repeat parrot fashion what BB tells her to, just like all those years of rote learning at school.

Can't somebody just tell her it was a stupid thing to do and to stop this pathetic rice pledging scheme now before it does any more damage.

I can't help thinking that it is just as corrupt (or at least immoral or unethical) to have made this a key policy to attract the 'stupid people' vote when just about every academic and person of average intelligence was warning her of the what the consequences would be if she introduced this 'doomed from the start' scheme!!!

Unsurprisingly, those concerns relating to a disaster scenario were justified and she pathetically tries to palm it off as "it has greatly raised the Thai rice farmers living standards". So much so, I guess, that they will travel to protest in Bentleys and Rolls Royces. If this happens I will eat my words (and some manky rice to help reduce the storage problems)!!

[gemini81]

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra vowed to take “ultimate” legal action against those found cheating in the rice pledging scheme.

Right before your eyes, right before your beautiful eyes,...

"Ooops,... I have to go to another shopping trip, bye bye"

I would rather suggest, economic science courses with professor doctors Barbie and Ken, from the Matell University

..and Vince Neil & Axel Rose's botox clinics.

[ratcatcher]

PM: "Corrupt officials in rice scheme will be severely punished"