Disgruntled villagers build own road

[Thaivisa News]

Khon Kaen:- Residents of a remote village in Khon Kaen’s Waeng Noi district decided that enough is enough. They have been waiting for over 40 years for the government to build a decent road to their village.

Their request has gone repeatedly unheeded so they decided to raise their own fund to build a 2.5-kilometer-long concrete road.

But since they are poor, their first fund raising could earn enough for building only 330 meters of the road so their dream to get the short road built may take a few years.

Thairath Online reported that the villagers are residents of Ban Nongko Village.

On Wednesday, a Thairath team witnessed about 300 of them joining hands to build the first 330-meter section of the road.

The village head, Saranyu Phuwiengkaew, said he has seen the hardship of the people during his three years in office. During the rainy season, the earth road became muddy and, making it hard for children to go to school.

He has requested budget from the Tambon Kanluang Municipality and Khon Kaen Provincial Administration but his request went unheeded on ground that the two local governments did not have budget. He said the request for budget from the government has never been answered either.

So, he held a meeting and all villages agreed to raise donations to build a five-meter wide and 2.5-km-long concrete road.

The village head said the villagers started building the road on Friday until Wednesday when they used up the construction materials so they construction has to be suspended until they receive more donations.

Wilai Sroykhai, 66, said the earth road has existed for 40 years and no politicians have cared to allocate a budget for improving it.

On April 13, the village managed to raise a fund of Bt415,000 mostly from young people who are working in other provinces. He said the construction may have to be waited until next year when more donations are collected.

[LuckyLew]

when asked for a comment the village chief said the people just have to be a little more patient, they will build the road soon

[borisloosebrain]

How totally believable this is. And how sad that's it's so believable.

[khwaibah]

when asked for a comment the village chief said the people just have to be a little more patient, they will build the road soon

Translation. "I want my cut."

[chooka]

Have a friend in rural Victoria, Australia, he and his neighbours had been asking for years to get 300 metres of a public dirt road to thier homes sealed to no avail. They sealed the road themselves and then the local council increased thier rates citing the value of thier properties had increased due to the public infrastructure improvements.

[bdenner]

This is hardly a surprise. I see it here in the rice paddies all over. The blame cannot be placed squarely on the governments shoulders, a lot of the responsibility is local.

The villages get an annual grant for infrastructure works under the SML system (Small Medium Large), the amount depends on the village size and more importantly it's continued payment depends on how the funds are spent and accounted for.

TW heads up the committee here in our village (and has the ATM card) to determine what works they will do eg. roads, drainage, upgrades to the clinic etc. She lodges a report and audit after each project. Not to say it's squeaky clean, there is corruption but that is between contractors and the village as a part of the quote preparation. - Well TiT

I have seen where some villages just hand out the funds to the elders and not do anything to improve their infrastructure. In due coarse the funds stop. - Then we hear then screaming from the roof tops.

[DLang]

On April 13, the village managed to raise a fund of Bt415,000 mostly from young people who are working in other provinces. He said the construction may have to be waited until next year when more donations are collected.

Will the 415k baht still be there next year?

I'd say 50/50, perhaps 30/70.

[fatfather]

It happens in my village as well. The connecting road was built in several steps and took two years to be completed, well, there are still missing about 250m to the village. But.... the section which was built first is already gone because it was built in such poor quality that the "new" road will only last for max. two years. So at moment we are watching the "new" road passing away section by section (last section is finished whilst the first section is already gone) to be back where we have been three/four years ago. What a waste of time and money. Why not build a proper quality road once and be fine for ten years? Pocket money!!!! The money lost in the building process has to be drawn back by saving material like cement, reinforcement bars etc....

Sad but true...

Fatfather

[ramrod711]

They have been waiting for over 40 years for the government to build a decent road to their village.

Opportunity knocking at the door. For a pittance the current government could hire local labour and equipment. Using a qualified, experienced supervisor, build a road and demonstrate that someone gives a damn.

[thequietman]

During the rainy season, the earth road became muddy and, making it hard for children to go to school.

Suppose it never occurred to them to just build a 1 1/2 metre wide concrete foot/cycle path the whole length of the village. Kids can walk/ride to school on a clean, safe footpath and it will prepare them for later life when they ride their motorbikes on the footpath anyway.

[watcharacters]

During the rainy season, the earth road became muddy and, making it hard for children to go to school.

Suppose it never occurred to them to just build a 1 1/2 metre wide concrete foot/cycle path the whole length of the village. Kids can walk/ride to school on a clean, safe footpath and it will prepare them for later life when they ride their motorbikes on the footpath anyway.

"It will prepare them for later life when they ride their motorbikes on the footpath anyway. "

Congrats, that got a chuckle out of me. +1

[Alwyn]

I hope they have the nouse to make it a toll road. Give villagers and who ever contributed a sticker to identify them so they never pay and stop and charge every car and bike that wants to use it. Double charge any government vehicles

[oneday]

Mr. Prayut...are you paying attention to the REAL needs of your people?

[winstonc]

the village fund money....wheres that gone over 40 years...next story...

[duckmandon]

I heard there is road for sale cheap in China. Do like they did (steal) I mean recycle it.

[fred Kubasa]

So sorry was on schedule 2019 as submarines, airship repairs, Hi speed train, tunnels/new jet combat aircraft are before road rebuilding ! STOP COMPLAINING AND BE PATIENT ! !

[casualbiker]

Mr. Prayut...are you paying attention to the REAL needs of your people?

Did you miss the 40 years wait bit?

Prayuth 10months in power.. Blood sucking PM of the people Thaksin and family over 10 years..... And you think it's Prayuth's fault... Jeeeeeze!

[chainarong]

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Have a friend in rural Victoria, Australia, he and his neighbours had been asking for years to get 300 metres of a public dirt road to thier homes sealed to no avail. They sealed the road themselves and then the local council increased thier rates citing the value of thier properties had increased due to the public infrastructure improvements.

In Kalgoorlie they put a ring road in after years of being ignored by Governments, then the Main Roads dept came along surveyed it then put down the hot mix.

[jackanapes]

same old situation not enough money allocated or it isn't a priority there are so many things that need to be dealt with the powers that be have a lot to answer for.

[plachon]

I suspect that the problem here is that the village head is not corrupt enough for the local govt and TAO to build the village a road, so they have passed it by all these years. But he is perhaps too honest and it is not worth the local elites while building the road. The fact that he can call upon the villagers to donate money for what is normally considered a state task, also points to his diligence and honesty as their representative. Most villagers have become too reliant on a system of patronage through the local politicians and bureaucrats to be able to organise or build things for themselves, beyond the temple. But this creates a healthy new precedent and if people gave the amount of money they normally donate to the temple to building local public infrastructure like this, perhaps they could break free from the entrenched political patronage system that enslaves them. Thaksin's TRT and Pheua Thai parties managed to perfect this system to maximum advantage, where the majority of villages were dependent on his patronage network, but maybe now a few are starting to become a little wiser, not that the present junta is offering a better alternative. It is just cutting out some of the middlemen.

Anyway, good luck to the village in getting enough money to complete their own road......and that they will maintain it once built. If it's come out of your own pocket, you should be a little bit more concerned about quality and lifespan than the existing sorry excuses for roads that crumble away within months of completion.

[chooka]

Mr. Prayut...are you paying attention to the REAL needs of your people?

Did you miss the 40 years wait bit?

Prayuth 10months in power.. Blood sucking PM of the people Thaksin and family over 10 years..... And you think it's Prayuth's fault... Jeeeeeze!

You said 40 yrs wait then blame Thaksin, who before him and then before them? You need to blame all.

[casualbiker]

Mr. Prayut...are you paying attention to the REAL needs of your people?

Did you miss the 40 years wait bit?

Prayuth 10months in power.. Blood sucking PM of the people Thaksin and family over 10 years..... And you think it's Prayuth's fault... Jeeeeeze!

You said 40 yrs wait then blame Thaksin, who before him and then before them? You need to blame all.

True enough.. But under Thaksin Thailand supposedly had the most money to spend to help the poor people... Barnharn did it for Supanburi... Slippery eel that he is!

[willyumiii]

On April 13, the village managed to raise a fund of Bt415,000 mostly from young people who are working in other provinces. He said the construction may have to be waited until next year when more donations are collected.

Will the 415k baht still be there next year?

I'd say 50/50, perhaps 30/70.

The 415k was used to build the first part of the road and construction stopped when the money ran out!

These people deserve praise, not the ridicule of a cynic like you!

Don't let facts get in you way.

Keep on bashing anyway.

[connda]

when asked for a comment the village chief said the people just have to be a little more patient, they will build the road soon

I wonder what the odds are on that first section of paved road going right by the village head's home (and possibly up the drive-way to boot. Lol. 2:1? 3:2? Just saying. I've lived here too long.

Kudos for the villages though. They might want to go for a cheaper solution though, like gravel. Come-on. The Trans-Alaska highway was gravel-base within my life-time. Worked just fine. And I built gravel based logging roads in the Pacific Northwest (lots of rain). If it's designed and built right, gavel roads can be rock-solid driving surfaces. But, that's not sataana (status). Gotta keep up with the Moo Baan next door. You can't change ingrained culture and linear thinking. Too bad.

Edited April 30, 2015 by connda

[connda]

It happens in my village as well. The connecting road was built in several steps and took two years to be completed, well, there are still missing about 250m to the village. But.... the section which was built first is already gone because it was built in such poor quality that the "new" road will only last for max. two years. So at moment we are watching the "new" road passing away section by section (last section is finished whilst the first section is already gone) to be back where we have been three/four years ago. What a waste of time and money. Why not build a proper quality road once and be fine for ten years? Pocket money!!!! The money lost in the building process has to be drawn back by saving material like cement, reinforcement bars etc....

Sad but true...

Fatfather

Why not build a proper quality road once and be fine for ten years?

If you've lived in a rural area for more than a couple of years, you know the answer. It's all about the Benjamins THBs!

[mango66]

This is hardly a surprise. I see it here in the rice paddies all over. The blame cannot be placed squarely on the governments shoulders, a lot of the responsibility is local.

The villages get an annual grant for infrastructure works under the SML system (Small Medium Large), the amount depends on the village size and more importantly it's continued payment depends on how the funds are spent and accounted for.

TW heads up the committee here in our village (and has the ATM card) to determine what works they will do eg. roads, drainage, upgrades to the clinic etc. She lodges a report and audit after each project. Not to say it's squeaky clean, there is corruption but that is between contractors and the village as a part of the quote preparation. - Well TiT

I have seen where some villages just hand out the funds to the elders and not do anything to improve their infrastructure. In due coarse the funds stop. - Then we hear then screaming from the roof tops.

they start to missing the election fee by Dubai !!

[mango66]

why they not just use some of the overpaid money for rice by Shinawatras regime ??

[NeverSure]

when asked for a comment the village chief said the people just have to be a little more patient, they will build the road soon

I wonder what the odds are on that first section of paved road going right by the village head's home (and possibly up the drive-way to boot. Lol. 2:1? 3:2? Just saying. I've lived here too long.

Kudos for the villages though. They might want to go for a cheaper solution though, like gravel. Come-on. The Trans-Alaska highway was gravel-base within my life-time. Worked just fine. And I built gravel based logging roads in the Pacific Northwest (lots of rain). If it's designed and built right, gavel roads can be rock-solid driving surfaces. But, that's not sataana (status). Gotta keep up with the Moo Baan next door. You can't change ingrained culture and linear thinking. Too bad.

This where the answer is and you are spot on. Most of the cost of a new road is what goes down under the hot mix, not the mix itself. Just like a building, if the foundation isn't there it won't stand.

Looking at many Thai roads I've always believed that the deterioration of roads from graft comes from shortcuts when building the base which doesn't show at first. Anyone can lay blacktop on top of the ground and call it a road but it won't be there next year.

The gravel road built like the base that's supposed to be under the asphalt is a far better road than asphalt or concrete with a substandard base.

Edited April 30, 2015 by NeverSure

[bendare]

good on the villagers all clubbing together

[Issangeorge]

when asked for a comment the village chief said the people just have to be a little more patient, they will build the road soon

I wonder what the odds are on that first section of paved road going right by the village head's home (and possibly up the drive-way to boot. Lol. 2:1? 3:2? Just saying. I've lived here too long.

Kudos for the villages though. They might want to go for a cheaper solution though, like gravel. Come-on. The Trans-Alaska highway was gravel-base within my life-time. Worked just fine. And I built gravel based logging roads in the Pacific Northwest (lots of rain). If it's designed and built right, gavel roads can be rock-solid driving surfaces. But, that's not sataana (status). Gotta keep up with the Moo Baan next door. You can't change ingrained culture and linear thinking. Too bad.

The problem with gravel, is it needs to be graded, during the rainy season perhaps twice a week.