Fishy collection of entrance fees detected at famous marine park in Krabi province

[webfact]

Fishy collection of entrance fees detected at famous marine park in South



KRABI: -- Collection of entrance fees to Nopparat Tara-Phi Phi Island national park in Krabi province rises to over The 500,000 baht a day from earlier 80,000 baht in two weeks after a working investigative panel of the National Reform Council (NRC) looked into the unusual low collection fees by park officials.

The NRC’s subcommittee on the reform of marine and coastal resource management was tasked to look into the entrance fee collection of all national parks in the country before proposing to the NRC for the reform.

Subcommittee chairman Asst Prof Thorn Thamrongnawasawasdi said from the investigation, it was found that in 2014, visitors to Nopparat Tara-Phi Phi Island national park doubled to over 100,000 but entrance fees collected increased to only 26 million baht, or merely three million baht increase from 23 million baht in 2013.

He questioned why collection was too low when taking into consideration the number of visitors which jumped to almost 50,000, but collection rising just three million baht.

He said unusually low collection of entrance fees did not happen only at this particular park, but at several other national parks in the country.

“This us why we suspected the fees might be dropped at somewhere,” he said.

The subcommittee investigated the Nopparat Tara-Phi Phi Island national park two weeks ago to make clear of three sources of revenues of national parks in the country.

They are entrance fees, welfare stores in the park, and other services.

From the investigation, the subcommittee found that two weeks after investigation was underway, collection of entrance fees at Nopparat Tara-Phi Phi Island national rise 40% or 500,000 baht more per day from earlier collection of just 80,000 baht a day.

This reflected unusual practises of the collection system of the marine park that prompted a need to reform.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/fishy-collection-of-entrance-fees-detected-at-famous-marine-park-in-south


-- Thai PBS 2015-06-11

[Cam Khao]

Can anyone make sense of this news post?

[coulson]

This is a really bad translation, even the figures don't tally!

''rise 40% or 500,000 baht more per day from earlier collection of just 80,000 baht a day''

So the NRC shows up & the skimming stops, temporarily - that's it?

[kinmaew]

Has anyone heard of computer technology and financial audit. Example, why do you have to pay "NOW" when the cops pull you over. It should be a fine linked to your rego and mailed to your address and you pay a central body electronically same for park fees where you can pay by card and are issued with a receipt. Living in the stone age in LOS and they wonder where their money goes. I know who gets it all in the end.

[roblgs]

Poor translation doesn't account for the numbers making no sense whatsoever.

80,000 to 500,000 is an increase of 525%... No idea where 40% comes from.

or are the numbers merely there to cloud the issue/confuse the hell out of things?

Ooh, it's got numbers, must be serious!

I remember the Bangkok Post reporting many years ago that One of the voyager spacecraft had left earth some 25 years before and was now a whopping 25 km earth!

[diehard60]

This whole thing does not make any sense at all. The people writing this do not know anything about reporting.

[smedly]

This whole thing does not make any sense at all. The people writing this do not know anything about reporting.

ok as usual something gets lost in translation but I think most people would have a very clear idea of what is going on at the national parks in Thailand - 10,000 people visited today but we let 7,000 of them in for nothing time to check a few employees for unusual wealth - I see another corruption scandal emerging, someone may have been creaming off almost 4m baht a month from just one park

Check the airport departure lounge

[h90]

Can anyone make sense of this news post?

Short version: Someone pocket most of the entrance fees, which is known since years or decades and now someone looked at it.

(Thank you Prayuth)

[SOTIRIOS]

........skimming....

...the national pastime.....

[masuk]

Can anyone make sense of this news post?

At a wild guess, maybe someone was fiddling the system?

Otherwise known as fingers in the till.

[jackanapes]

very fishy indeed corruption rears its nasty head again will it never end .

[Ulic]

One for you, four for me, one for you, four for me..................

[Fullstop]

........skimming....

...the national pastime.....

"Stealing"

[PETERTHEEATER]

This reflected unusual practises of the collection system of the marine park that prompted a need to reform.

Don't you just love this line?

[MockingJay]

Nice, 420k extra per day for "whoever is in charge of collecting now" - well done guys! I don't believe any of this crap until the situation in the national parks truly improves and fishing boats are sunk for violating protected areas, etc...

My tip to the junta - catch all park rangers and officials of the Similan National Park who have been working there over the past 25 years and seize all their assets. With that money alone (I estimate half a billion THB) you can fix quite a lot of Thailand's problems.