Molly’s parents angry at unresponsive Phuket officials

[Lite Beer]

Molly’s parents angry at unresponsive Phuket officials
Tanyaluk Sakoot

Molly's picture on display at today's ceremony in her memory. She would have been eight today.

PHUKET: Today is March 13, which would have been Molly Anne Bailey’s eighth birthday, had she not died on December 11 last year after her mother drove into a huge hole in a Phuket road that had not been marked with effective warnings.

The hole was left after heavy rain caused a section of a minor road in Srisoonthorn to collapse, leaving a gaping gap eight metres long and two metres deep, into which the car crashed.

The road had been wrecked for a month but the local Srisoonthorn Municipality, pleading poverty, did nothing about repairs and erected temporary barriers which later disappeared and were not replaced.

At Wat Thepwanaram in Baan Manik today (March 13), where Molly's parents went to attend a ceremony to mark the 100th day after Molly’s death, her mother, Phakkamon Duangchaytemcharat, 38, told The Phuket News that the officials who failed to repair the road should apologise.

“Sirsoonthorn Municipality officials should admit they were wrong. It was their responsibility as officials [to repair the hole]. I’m not talking about money.”

Molly’s father Gordon “Badger” Bailey said, “We’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting and nothing’s been done. But they’ve got plenty of time to be out and spending lots of money [on the annual celebration of the Heroines’ Victory].

“I know it’s a big yearly event but it’s very easy for them to push other things to one side and forget about responsibility.”

The Mayor of Srisoontorn Municipality, Worawut Songyod, was not at the 100-day ceremony.

He declined to speak directly with The Phuket News but sent a Facebook message saying, “I have not had a meeting [with my staff] about this yet. We have not reached a conclusion. I will inform you later [when we reach one].”

Asked whether he would be talking to Molly’s parents soon, he replied, “Once I have held a meeting I will talk with the family.”

Ms Phakkamon said, “Today, Molly should be enjoying her birthday. We should not be here marking the 100th day after her death. It is sad, so sad, really. It is a day that I must remember.

Her voice shaking, she added, “I am suffering so much. I can carry on living only thanks to the medicines.”

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/mollys-parents-angry-at-unresponsive-phuket-officials-51407.php

-- Phuket News 2015-03-13

[tonytigerbkk]

He declined to speak directly with The Phuket News but sent a Facebook message saying, “I have not had a meeting [with my staff] about this yet. We have not reached a conclusion. I will inform you later [when we reach one].”

Seriously, a press release through facebook, what a cowardly despicable piece of shit.

100 days after the death of this young girl and he has not bothered to bring the closure that the parents deserve.

How fast would he act if his salary was delayed by just one day?

[OmegaRacer]

Taking responsibility and apologizing are not something I ever expect here.

[NeverSure]

What a beautiful little girl and what a shame.

[steve187]

RIP. Molly

Life is too cheap here, road safety does not have a Thai translation. the road should have blocked with an unmoveable barrier.

I feel for the mum and dad

[Patje]

and once again : Thailand it starts with the people .....

Rip little girl

[cornishcarlos]

Whilst the council should take responsibility and at least apologize to the parents, the mother should also shoulder a portion of blame for not ensuring her daughter was properly restrained in the car. A seatbelt could possibly have saved her life ?

BTW I did express my condolences to the family on the original thread, so don't bash me about it now...

[FireMedic]

The thing is, the officials don't care. The didn't care then and they don't care now. They have their own agenda and fixing real problems isn't one of them. What a shame this little girls died.

[maidee]

just wondering, did the girl wear a seatbelt ?

[saanya]

So what's the Mayor's Facebook page link?

Why not have a few thousand irritated foreigners and Thais post there.

Clearly he's going to "hide out until this blows over".

Don't let him "save face". He should "lose face".

A young child died which trumps all of the possible replies about "his privacy" or "his authority".

[Valentine]

If the reporting is correct (doubtful given the level of reporting here) in the quoted words from the mayor then he really is a heartless bast...d.

Edited March 14, 2015 by Valentine

[MRGTINGTONG]

Can't lose Face by seeing the parents

He don't really give a <deleted>>, not his child, not his problem, typical Thainess

Makes me lmfao......imbosills I think how u spell it.

[rebelplatoon]

How sad. My sincerest sympathy for the parents. What a crock of B... from the Authorities. But we know that's how they are.

[shirtless]

They are liable if they admit it was their fault where the hell is their duty of care.

[gchurch259]

In the USA this would be grounds for a Wrongful Death Action both Criminal and Civil against the Government.

But, Walking the streets of Bangkok it is apparent no body gives a damn about the conditions of the roads and sidewalks.

Dear General/PM can you send someone down to jerk a knot in somebodies ass, Please !!

[cardinalblue]

His boss's boss should have intervened no longer than a week after the incident...

Totally unacceptable but that's a western perspective and we are used to this type of lack accountability...just the way it is over here and hope it won't happen to my family and me...

Really Russian roulette re Thai public safety ...

[SDM0712]

Whilst the council should take responsibility and at least apologize to the parents, the mother should also shoulder a portion of blame for not ensuring her daughter was properly restrained in the car. A seatbelt could possibly have saved her life ?

BTW I did express my condolences to the family on the original thread, so don't bash me about it now...

How many of us really make our kids wear seat belts in the car? The problem is that unless you have the child on a booster seat at exactly the right height (which I'm not even sure you can buy here) the belt runs over the child's neck which would also be catastrophic in this kind of situation. Since this accident I've made my boy wear the belt under his arm but around his body, although I'm really not sure if this would secure him.

I'd heard that the parents were starting a private prosecution against the local authority, but haven't heard any more on that.

SDM

[Surasak]

The local council pleading poverty? If such is the case, who has their greedy fingers in the till? The Mayor should be ashamed of himself,a0 for his remarks and b0 for having the courtesy to show up at the 100 day memorial service. His is ultimately responsible but chooses to hide behind inane platitudes. Total cowardly attitude.

[Lupatria]

RIP. Molly

Life is too cheap here, road safety does not have a Thai translation. the road should have blocked with an unmoveable barrier.

I feel for the mum and dad

Life is cheap here - because taking responsibility is too expensive.

[steelepulse]

This guy Worawut Songyod is a scumbag, plain and simple.

[CapeThai]

He needs to be removed from his position as he's obviously not fit as Mayor. This is a complete joke and he should be ashamed of himself. Hope the PM does something about officials acting like <deleted>

RIP little one...

[Somtamnication]

Speechless. We should all stand outside his office with banners. See how fast he chokes on his somtam and comes running out with a high wai.

Edited March 14, 2015 by Somtamnication

[cekipa]

Sad and nonsense tragedy indeed for this family. All my respect for this parents which demonstrate much more dignity than the Mayor.

[junk1e]

Road safety is desperately in need of improvement. The number of times I have seen shunts because bollards have been put on the main highway without any warning for oncoming traffic is ridiculous. This particular incident is horrendous. A huge hole on a dark road with no warning. As I recall a motorbike went down the same hole previous to this accident. Whether or not she was wearing a seat belt is masking the cause. Hard to imagine what the damages would be if this occured in the West. Not that damages will bring this little girl's life back but would send a message to the authorities.

[BestBitterPhuket]

It's because of useless people like him that Thailand is a developing country, but don't blame it on him. The system and decades of flawed policies have allowed him to cling on to local power while he should be sweeping floors in the municipal hall instead (if capable).

[ToddinChonburi]

This Mayor is a huge embarrassment to Thailand, how does he sleep at night .

[Toknarok]

Sometimes living in a 'nanny' state has it's advantages. A couple of years ago I was back in Aust. having a holiday in Perth. Just outside the house I was staying in I noticed that a heavy iron storm drain cover had somehow come adrift leaving a deep hole, dangerous for both traffic and pedestrians. Despite the fact that it was a public holiday there was someone at the local Municipality to take my call and within an hour a team had arrived and repaired the drain.

Now I don't expect that sort of service in Thailand, but you would think that in Phuket which is one of the best known holiday destinations in Asia that the upkeep of basic infrastructure such as roads would be better than this appalling example of neglect. I suppose the powers that be have much more pressing items on their agandas such as whether to allow beach umbrellas or not to worry about whether innocent little girls are getting killed.

[ToddinChonburi]

Make sure you share link on your own Face book account and make it public.

[starkey_rich]

I asked Phuket news to give a link to his facebook page so people could read his comment.

what a surprise .No response.

So we just have his word that he posted anything so that's not worth anything is it ?.

[Myran]

Whilst the council should take responsibility and at least apologize to the parents, the mother should also shoulder a portion of blame for not ensuring her daughter was properly restrained in the car. A seatbelt could possibly have saved her life ?

BTW I did express my condolences to the family on the original thread, so don't bash me about it now...

How many of us really make our kids wear seat belts in the car? The problem is that unless you have the child on a booster seat at exactly the right height (which I'm not even sure you can buy here) the belt runs over the child's neck which would also be catastrophic in this kind of situation. Since this accident I've made my boy wear the belt under his arm but around his body, although I'm really not sure if this would secure him.

I'd heard that the parents were starting a private prosecution against the local authority, but haven't heard any more on that.

SDM

I'll go ahead and say that all responsible parents who care for their children make them wear seat belts. If a booster seat is needed, you get one – simple as that. Even if you haven't got a booster seat, my guess is that the pros far outweigh the cons.

If the mother didn't make sure this poor child had a seat belt on, she is equally responsible for her death as the people who allowed that hole to remain.