Rice farmers from Phichit, other provinces demand payment from government

[webfact]

Rice farmers from Phichit, other provinces demand payment from government
THE NATION



BANGKOK: -- RICE FARMERS from Phichit and nearby provinces yesterday laid siege to the Bueng Na Rang District Office to demand long-overdue payment for their last crop under the government's controversial pledging scheme, while others continued demonstrating on a major highway.

In Ratchaburi, farmers have threatened to block a key crossing of major routes linking |the South and the Central region in a few |days.

Some of them vowed to head to Bangkok to launch protests after they gathered at a rice development centre in Muang district and handed their sale certificates to Walit Charoensombat, their leader.

Walit said he would include the certificates as proof of sales in petitions to the PM's Office and Commerce Ministry for immediate payment.

He said 27,000 farmers were registered for the scheme in Ratchaburi, but fewer than 4,000 had received money from the government.

The farmers were severely short of cash to cover costs for the next harvest.

"We have no money to even buy rice seeds and other farm supplies while shouldering debts incurred through non-payment of the rice-pledging money," he said.

In Phichit, the farmers said they would also call on local civil servants not to work while they would try to enter the compound and seize it. Police were stationed around the compound to prevent intrusion.

Governor Surachai Khan-asa said negotiations with the farmers were in progress, and the farmers were asked to halt their blockade.

Surachai said what was worrying was that the rice-pledging scheme and payment were policies of the caretaker national government. What provincial authorities could do now was only to provide winter clothing and medical care to the protesters.

-- The Nation 2014-01-20

[JRSoul]

"We have no money to even buy rice seeds and other farm supplies.........."

Perhaps it would be a good time to look at other employment options. The rice scam is collapsing, so they can forget about hugely over-priced returns and will now only receive market value in competition with other producers and the government stockpile. Only the most efficient farmers will make a viable profit under these conditions.

[jaltsc]

"Surachai said what was worrying was that the rice-pledging scheme and payment were policies of the caretaker national government. What provincial authorities could do now was only to provide winter clothing and medical care to the protesters."

Far cry from the pie in the sky promises from the government they voted for after accepting the requisite bribes to buy their votes. If they want to be angry with anyone, they should be angry with themselves for allowing their own greed to put them in their present situation. How many times do they need to be lied to before they understand that once they have done their job of electing the crooked candidates they are only an afterthought? Chances are they will once again vote for whomever pays for their votes and find themselves in the same situation next year. Fool me once, shame on you....Fool me every year, I'm an idiot.

[NongKhaiKid]

Interesting article in the other newspaper featuring an interview with some Udon Thani farmers supposedly disillusioned with being used and abused by PTP and that their votes cannot be counted on as is expected.

One said he would vote Democrat if they could live up to their promises but that seems a bit too much.

[jaidam]

We demand payment. Or else we'll huff and we'll puff, and we'll blow our bamboo shacks down, get razzed on laokhao and still vote for who the village headman tells us to. Not very threatening to be fair.

[Ricardo]

Wonder when the Great Thinker in the bunker will talk to the world-media again, to explain away this little rather-large snag, in the policy he thought-up and made a key policy at the last elections ?

Never, one suspects, as he doesn't appear to 'do' admissions of failure or take responsibility !

Does anyone know what the PTP policy is, that they're surely promoting as part of their current election-promises, for the future of the rice-pledging scheme ? Are they willing to admit that it's unsustainable, or that the pledging-price will have to be lowered (as seems inevitable), or are they simply staying quiet about it ? Would love to know !

[poisonus]

So 23,000 still unpaid in Ratchaburi province alone. This sounds like if we added all the unpaid farmers in the country, it is going to be way over the 60,000 quoted by the PTP Finance Ministry.

So I wonder what the REAL figure is. Maybe in the hundreds of thousands perhaps?

So even if the farmer brings his spouse only and not their workers too into Bangkok, this could be a mega-protest in the making composed largely of the governments voters.

It just gets better and better.

Let us hope that the PDRC invites them to sit down and eat rice with them.

Now that Yingluck... is reconciliation.

[smutcakes]

Seems like many PTP supporters are turning against the Government. This is a good thing if true, and hopefully in the next 2 years if the Democrats decided to participate in an election there would be a strong chance of them winning. This is the only long term solution to the problem, winning the election. Anything else is just short term interventionism which drives divide and hatred in the society.

[poisonus]

Wonder when the Great Thinker in the bunker will talk to the world-media again, to explain away this little rather-large snag, in the policy he thought-up and made a key policy at the last elections ?

Never, one suspects, as he doesn't appear to 'do' admissions of failure or take responsibility !

Does anyone know what the PTP policy is, that they're surely promoting as part of their current election-promises, for the future of the rice-pledging scheme ? Are they willing to admit that it's unsustainable, or that the pledging-price will have to be lowered (as seems inevitable), or are they simply staying quiet about it ? Would love to know !

I can answer that for you Ricardo.

They said that all current government schemes would stay in place. That is one of the key points of their election manifesto... That and 'reform' which they hijacked from the PDRC... a rather lazy manifesto in my opinion.

The Dems are to be commended for boycotting these elections before reform. Because in the current situation, they have a very good chance and they knew it. (according to opinion polls).

[noitom]

Wonder when the Great Thinker in the bunker will talk to the world-media again, to explain away this little rather-large snag, in the policy he thought-up and made a key policy at the last elections ?

Never, one suspects, as he doesn't appear to 'do' admissions of failure or take responsibility ! alt=whistling.gif pagespeed_url_hash=3700464609 width=19 height=18>

Does anyone know what the PTP policy is, that they're surely promoting as part of their current election-promises, for the future of the rice-pledging scheme ? Are they willing to admit that it's unsustainable, or that the pledging-price will have to be lowered (as seems inevitable), or are they simply staying quiet about it ? Would love to know !

Good points. He doesn't seem to be "skyping in" so much. Or having meetings in Hong Kong, Dubai or somewhere else.

[JRSoul]

When the Feb 2 election fails and a later date is announced, it may well be time for the Dems to join the election circus. By then the PTP magicians will have been shown to be nothing but 3rd rate clowns (those not already indicted.)

[noitom]

Seems like many PTP supporters are turning against the Government. This is a good thing if true, and hopefully in the next 2 years if the Democrats decided to participate in an election there would be a strong chance of them winning. This is the only long term solution to the problem, winning the election. Anything else is just short term interventionism which drives divide and hatred in the society.

This is what the Thai press would have you believe.

[JRSoul]

Seems like many PTP supporters are turning against the Government. This is a good thing if true, and hopefully in the next 2 years if the Democrats decided to participate in an election there would be a strong chance of them winning. This is the only long term solution to the problem, winning the election. Anything else is just short term interventionism which drives divide and hatred in the society.

This is what the Thai press would have you believe.

Oh right. So these unpaid farmers are really ardent PTP supporters, and a B500 bribe will see them happily marking the right box.

[MaxLee]

"Rice farmers from Phichit, other provinces demand payment from government"

No problem, rob the several Bangkok-ONLY-Bangkok banks, because the police is too busy finding men in black assassins and other press spies and other FALANG

Rob the banks and your Pheu Thai master will whitewash you from all your crimes and guarantee you your yearly 1000 Baht vote buying bonus.

[BillyBobThai]

My wife owns property in Phichit provence that she rents out, for a friend to grow rice on. The last crop that he sold was in Nov. 2013, that he sold to a private buyer for less than the gov. scheme. He claimed that he had heard talk that the gov. monies were running out and he was going to have to wait months to get it, so he went private. These farmers might not have an education, but they are no fools.

[MJP]

"We have no money to even buy rice seeds and other farm supplies.........."

Perhaps it would be a good time to look at other employment options. The rice scam is collapsing, so they can forget about hugely over-priced returns and will now only receive market value in competition with other producers and the government stockpile. Only the most efficient farmers will make a viable profit under these conditions.

Well the thing is, they were making a living from it before, not a great one but it was stable. Then someone comes along and promises them a load of money. Of course they'll jump at the chance of improving their lot. You would. I would.

Now imagine you've done a years work including the investment to do it, your work has been gratefully received and suddenly you're paid zero for it. Nothing.

Start again in something else? When you have nothing?

Pretty difficult when there's thousands of others in the same situation and the economy isn't that diverse in the first place.

Words are so easily spoken, even easier to type on a forum. But if you put yourself in their position, with their knowledge base and resources . . . . not that easy.

[JoeThePoster]

[pipkins]

A very desperate hope for Suthep.

The EC has blocked the payments to the farmers.

Today, Suthep at this minute is heading to Sutisan to block the banks making payments to farmers.

And he thinks the the farmers will be on his side when they see all this.. People in the North really are not stupid. Time some people learned that.

The Government has had it's hands tied by the EC and Suthep closing the Bank.

So protest number one if there is an Army Coup this week will be these same farmers marching to BKK demanding payments from the governement. Which in the unlikely event of a coup will then be Suthep.

This is the measure of the man. HE is sowing seeds of discontent that if he suceeded would immediately rebound on him. Incredible that people are latching onto this in hope it will affect Yingluck. Nobody is pinning anything on her in caretaker mode as the decisions have been shifted onto the Courts.

[MJP]

A very desperate hope for Suthep.

The EC has blocked the payments to the farmers.

Today, Suthep at this minute is heading to Sutisan to block the banks making payments to farmers.

And he thinks the the farmers will be on his side when they see all this.. People in the North really are not stupid. Time some people learned that.

The Government has had it's hands tied by the EC and Suthep closing the Bank.

So protest number one if there is an Army Coup this week will be these same farmers marching to BKK demanding payments from the governement. Which in the unlikely event of a coup will then be Suthep.

This is the measure of the man. HE is sowing seeds of discontent that if he suceeded would immediately rebound on him. Incredible that people are latching onto this in hope it will affect Yingluck. Nobody is pinning anything on her in caretaker mode as the decisions have been shifted onto the Courts.

+1

In the least, the farmers should be paid fair market value right now. Otherwise this country is looking at severe instability and civil unrest and let's remember many of these people are actually poor, there's a potential human tragedy on a large scale unfolding with this.

[metisdead]

A troll post using incorrect names has been removed. If you don’t want your post to be removed, spell people’s names correctly.

[JesseFrank]

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/697863-thailand-live-monday-20-jan-2014/?p=7316729

BANGKOK: -- Deputy Finance Minister Thanusak Lek-uthai is due to meet with the board of Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives today (Monday) to discuss the government’s request for the bank to advance its customers’ deposits for use to repay rice farmers.

In the meantime, bank employees will wear black today as a gesture of protest against the government’s plan to use the bank’s liquidity to repay the farmers for their harvests pledged since last October

Keep calm boys we're gone pay you, only backdraw is that we gonna use your own savings for that .

[poisonus]

Sorry all you redheads.

The EC is not responsible for this stupid scheme, and Suthep is not responsible for it either.

The PTP voting rice farmers and the Yingluck government are solely responsible for this situation so stop trying to shift blame onto others.

Have you not heard the saying... 'You made your bed, now lie in it' ?

The suffering of the farmers has been brought about by their inability to see through a vote buying populist policy, coupled with the government's stupidity and lack of care once they secured those votes. They could have secured the borrowing BEFORE they dissolved parliament, and their lack of foresight and basic intelligence has cost them and the farmers dearly.

This rice scheme is under strict investigation regarding MASSIVE levels of fraud right throughout the scheme, and the whereabouts of up to 400 billion baht (so called expenses)..... Lol

With all this negativity are you surprised that the EC won't sanction another 130 billion to be poured into this black hole? No election commission in the world would sanction this. That is like $43 Billion USD a massive amount of money for even the US economy to scrape together and the US economy is about 50 times bigger than Thailand's. It actually represents about 12% of the entire Thai GDP.

Suthep is right to walk on the bank to stop ILLEGAL payments to farmers at a rate of about 3 Billion a day.

The government are pressuring the BAAC to force it to use depositor capital for the payments, which the bank president, the bank employees and the unions are against. Despite the EC saying NO!

I would not be surprised if there was not a run on the bank starting from today which can force the bank to collapse and that will be the end of the BAAC and the farmers still won't be paid.

Yingluck and her puppets need to make a televised apology to the nation and agree to step down in the wave of 'no confidence' from all sections of society and allow a government to come in who is capable of clearing up this mess they have created in their wake.

All your anti-PDRC ranting will do nothing to change my mind on this issue.

[poisonus]

BANGKOK: -- Deputy Finance Minister Thanusak Lek-uthai is due to meet with the board of Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives today (Monday) to discuss the government’s request for the bank to advance its customers’ deposits for use to repay rice farmers.

In the meantime, bank employees will wear black today as a gesture of protest against the government’s plan to use the bank’s liquidity to repay the farmers for their harvests pledged since last October.

Mr Thanusak, also chairman of BAAC board, said Sunday that about 160 billion baht worth of rice crops had already been pledged under the rice pledging scheme for the 2013-14 crops and the BAAC has, so far, paid about 50 billion baht to the farmers.


Source: http://englishnews.t...tests-escalate/

[poisonus]

'He also assured that the bank would get its money back for every baht spent plus interest as soon as the government has received revenue from rice sales.'

By the time you make enough rice sales to cover the 130 Billion you plan to steal from the BAAC, the next rice harvest bill will be in with still no money.

Yingluck still insists that this scheme is working.

Laughable.

[northernjohn]

"Surachai said what was worrying was that the rice-pledging scheme and payment were policies of the caretaker national government. What provincial authorities could do now was only to provide winter clothing and medical care to the protesters."

Far cry from the pie in the sky promises from the government they voted for after accepting the requisite bribes to buy their votes. If they want to be angry with anyone, they should be angry with themselves for allowing their own greed to put them in their present situation. How many times do they need to be lied to before they understand that once they have done their job of electing the crooked candidates they are only an afterthought? Chances are they will once again vote for whomever pays for their votes and find themselves in the same situation next year. Fool me once, shame on you....Fool me every year, I'm an idiot.

the article also said

He said 27,000 farmers were registered for the scheme in Ratchaburi, but fewer than 4,000 had received money from the government.

I wonder out of the 4,000 who were paid how many had confections in side the present government. How many were big conglomerate farmers? How many were small family farmers. It would seem the majority were small farmers as they did not have the money a big conglomerate farmer would to see them through a tough time.

Bottom line is how many small farmers will have to sell their farms to the big farmers and then if they wish to continue rice farming lease the land back.

[MJP]

"Surachai said what was worrying was that the rice-pledging scheme and payment were policies of the caretaker national government. What provincial authorities could do now was only to provide winter clothing and medical care to the protesters."

Far cry from the pie in the sky promises from the government they voted for after accepting the requisite bribes to buy their votes. If they want to be angry with anyone, they should be angry with themselves for allowing their own greed to put them in their present situation. How many times do they need to be lied to before they understand that once they have done their job of electing the crooked candidates they are only an afterthought? Chances are they will once again vote for whomever pays for their votes and find themselves in the same situation next year. Fool me once, shame on you....Fool me every year, I'm an idiot.

the article also said

He said 27,000 farmers were registered for the scheme in Ratchaburi, but fewer than 4,000 had received money from the government.

I wonder out of the 4,000 who were paid how many had confections in side the present government. How many were big conglomerate farmers? How many were small family farmers. It would seem the majority were small farmers as they did not have the money a big conglomerate farmer would to see them through a tough time.

Bottom line is how many small farmers will have to sell their farms to the big farmers and then if they wish to continue rice farming lease the land back.

Bottom line is how many small farmers will have to sell their farms to the big farmers and then if they wish to continue rice farming lease the land back.

Where it's at and I believe the plan all along. Disenfranchisement of those who were coming out of poverty and getting ideas. Same old patronage system at work here . . . on the grandest of scales.

[scorecard]

Wonder when the Great Thinker in the bunker will talk to the world-media again, to explain away this little rather-large snag, in the policy he thought-up and made a key policy at the last elections ?

Never, one suspects, as he doesn't appear to 'do' admissions of failure or take responsibility ! alt=whistling.gif pagespeed_url_hash=3700464609 width=19 height=18>

Does anyone know what the PTP policy is, that they're surely promoting as part of their current election-promises, for the future of the rice-pledging scheme ? Are they willing to admit that it's unsustainable, or that the pledging-price will have to be lowered (as seems inevitable), or are they simply staying quiet about it ? Would love to know !

Good points. He doesn't seem to be "skyping in" so much. Or having meetings in Hong Kong, Dubai or somewhere else.

Well yes, there are very few reports of Skype and phone calls, but I suspect there is frantic discussion backwards and forwards but deliberately kept under wraps.

In fact given the whole situation I imagine the paymaster is (well behind the scenes) extremely active to try to shore up his folly.

Anybody want to forecast when the lady will jump ship?

[Barney R]

The only people really winning out of this whole fiasco (apart from corrupt officials ,rice millers ect ) are the the farmers in Vietnam ,India , Bangladesh and once buyers leave it takes years to get them back . With the Thai baht rising the price of rice here just increases . Yep well done Yingluck how to ruin a thriving industry you should be very proud of yourself - not

[Baerboxer]

FIL in Isaan is still waiting payment. along with all his neighbours. He blames YL and her brother. MIL thinks its just how all government's behave.

Neither have any idea about politics, the scheme, economics, the reasons behind the current situation etc. They know the Shins are corrupt as hell but scared to discuss it openly. They will struggle until they get paid if I stop bailing them out. Wifey is going nuts because both parents say the will still vote PTP because "everyone will do round here". They have absolutely no idea of the policies or behaviours of the people they are voting for, but are in total awe of them. Give them 500 baht, tell them they'll get paid soon, it's all Sutheps fault, darling YL will make sure you get paid when she's re-elected and they will do as told.

The Shin propaganda machine has done a very good job on brainwashing all the people like my in-laws. Poor, hardworking, honest people - who never had the chance for real education or opportunities the corrupt politicians continue to deny them.

[Ricardo]

Wonder when the Great Thinker in the bunker will talk to the world-media again, to explain away this little rather-large snag, in the policy he thought-up and made a key policy at the last elections ?

Never, one suspects, as he doesn't appear to 'do' admissions of failure or take responsibility ! alt=whistling.gif pagespeed_url_hash=3700464609 width=19 height=18>

Does anyone know what the PTP policy is, that they're surely promoting as part of their current election-promises, for the future of the rice-pledging scheme ? Are they willing to admit that it's unsustainable, or that the pledging-price will have to be lowered (as seems inevitable), or are they simply staying quiet about it ? Would love to know !

I can answer that for you Ricardo.

They said that all current government schemes would stay in place. That is one of the key points of their election manifesto... That and 'reform' which they hijacked from the PDRC... a rather lazy manifesto in my opinion.

The Dems are to be commended for boycotting these elections before reform. Because in the current situation, they have a very good chance and they knew it. (according to opinion polls).

Thank-you !

That PTP would actually promise to continue the scheme, with the same high price, would be ridiculous given their recent inability to fund it properly or to sell the rice on.

That they would promise to continue the scheme, but 'forget' to mention what the future price would be, would seem more credible during an election-campaign.