Thailand needs national strategies to attain status of developed nation

[webfact]

NRSA’s 1st Vice President: Thailand needs national strategies to attain status of developed nation

BANGKOK, 18 March 2016 (NNT) – A vice president of the National Reform Steering Assembly has stressed the importance of national strategies to bring Thailand closer to being recognized as a developed nation.

NRSA’s First Vice President Alongkorn Ponlaboot said that Thailand needs to have a set of national strategies, which must also be inscribed in the Constitution.

Mr. Alongkorn’s statement was made during his lecture at a seminar on the 20-year national development strategies. The seminar was organized by the Royal Thai Police and was attended by police officers and officials from various state offices.

He said that, by including it in the charter, future governments will be able to follow the plans set out in the strategies, which will help Thailand move forward in a more secure, prosperous and sustainable manner.

Mr. Alongkorn went on to say that the committee tasked with the writing of the national strategies will complete a draft that will be reviewed every five years or when any difficult situation erupts and affects the intent of the national strategies.


-- NNT 2016-03-18

[jamesbrock]

Thailand will never attain status of developed nation unless a complete top-to-bottom restructure of the RTP is undertaken, decentralising its command structure, and transferring its reporting to the Ministry of Justice, recruiting overseas advisors/trainers, imposing strict ethical guidelines, sacking every single one of the tens of thousands of criminals currently sitting in inactive posts, and providing a living wage to officers.

Start there, do it properly, end political interference and nepotistic postings, give it time to end the endemic corruption in all facets of Thai society and the billions and trillions of baht flowing freely from the public purse, and just maybe Thailand could then attain status of developed nation.

[Chang_paarp]

How about having a properly paid professional police force that will act without fear or favor.

A review of laws that appear out of step with developed nations across the globe.

Corruption, blatant or disguised, is not usually part of a developed nation.

Any one else want to add a few suggestions?

[jamesbrock]

How about having a properly paid professional police force that will act without fear or favor.

A review of laws that appear out of step with developed nations across the globe.

Corruption, blatant or disguised, is not usually part of a developed nation.

Any one else want to add a few suggestions?

Apologies in advance for the long post, but I personally believe you got it in one.

For fear of repeating myself, nothing less than a complete top-to-bottom restructure of the RTP will be necessary for Thailand to move ahead.

The primary problem of the RTP, the primary cause of its endemic corruption, lies with its structure. The RTP is a state agency with a juristic person status under the prime minister’s command. The agency is divided into central and regional offices, all of which are under the responsibility of a single commander-in-chief, the Commissioner-General. The chain of command descends downwards to the police station level. The organisational structure is centralised, with a 250,000-strong force nationwide.

This organisational structure brings with it several problems, most of which contribute to corruption. The first problem, as you mentioned is the salary scale for police officers, which is very low compared with that of their foreign counterparts and even with the salaries paid to officials in similar Thai organisations such as the Department of Special Investigation, court prosecutors, or other officials involved in the criminal justice process. RTP officers holding a bachelor’s degree or better receiving an initial salary of only 8,340 baht (260 USD), compared with 17,560 baht (548 USD) earned by justice officials. Moreover, the entry-level salary of police officers with a sub-bachelor education is a mere 6,800 baht (212 USD). It's no wonder police resort to petty corruption, coercing bribes from the public or extorting money from traffic law violators, in order to make ends meet.

Part of the stated reason why the average salary of Thai policemen is so low is the sheer size of personnel at 250,000, making it difficult to initiate a wholesale pay rise to ensure all earn enough to meet rising living expenses. For example, if all policemen in the agency were to receive a 5,000 baht increase in monthly salary, the government would have to pay an additional 15 billion baht (420 million USD) annually. Of course if they sacked every one of the tens-of-thousands of officers sitting in 'inactive posts' that figure could be cut significantly.

Another problem with the centralised structure of the police force is that high-level officials in the central office can appoint officers at the regional level. Moreover, since there are more officers at the commissioned level than at lower levels, with the former being granted power to hire or fire the latter, the reasons for promotions or demotions are unrelated to work performance, but rather to the personal relationships of officers with higher-ranking officials. In addition, since the Royal Thai Police changed its name from the Police Department and came under the control Prime Minister’s Office in 2004, politicians have become much more involved in the appointment process of policemen.

The worst problem of all is the conspicuous purchase of positions within the agency, with the asking price for each position being revealed openly. Once those who bought their way up start working in their new positions, they will undergo a ‘payback’ period during which they extract bribes and protection money from illegal business operators to make up for the money ‘invested’ in buying their higher positions.

Structural reform of the Royal Thai Police toward a more decentralised system would not only cut the line of command and reduce widespread corruption among officers, but would allow for recruitment and postings to be awarded on merit, not based on nepotism. Such reform will be able to alleviate corruption problems since they are inextricably linked to a centralised police system that results in high-level officers having too much power. The unfortunate consequences of this are embezzlement of government funds, since the funds are allocated to a single agency; bribery from citizens at a high frequency and amounts, since the bribes are passed up to higher-ranked officials along the chain of command; and collection of protection money, which is also passed up the chain of command, from illegal business operators.

The distribution or separation of police power would be effective in partially severing the chain of command that in turn can discourage the passing of bribes. It would also reduce the power of high-level officials, making them unable to intervene in the appointment process of lower-ranked policemen, which in turn can prevent the purchases of positions that are one of the causes of bribery and protection money collection. Most importantly, the decentralisation of police power or the downsizing of the agency would result in a general increase in police salaries, weakening the oft-mentioned reason for corruption.

Even though such reform would change Royal Thai Police for the better, the agency still lacks commanders willing to sacrifice their personal benefits for the greater good.

[clockman]

Come back in another 50 years?

[Bender]

its not only about salary, even if you double their salary, it will not be enough. As they can earn 10 time more throught corruption!

This country should start teaching their new born, about ethics, about honesty, about duty, about honor, about basic right (like everyone is equals)

They should teach lying, stealing, cheating is very bad!

Then one day you will have a generation of honest people.

[selftaopath]

How about having a properly paid professional police force that will act without fear or favor.

A review of laws that appear out of step with developed nations across the globe.

Corruption, blatant or disguised, is not usually part of a developed nation.

Any one else want to add a few suggestions?

How a/b starting "small" (big for Thailand however) with trash pickup in villages, or running water (drinkable) in homes, or how a/b doing something with miles of dirt roads? Bigger things like internet, education, govt. transparency, and having a police force that is mandated to "protect and serve" (LOL yea right.... in Thailand? lol )?

Ah nice laugh to start the day.

[selftaopath]

Come back in another 50 years?

That soon?

[selftaopath]

its not only about salary, even if you double their salary, it will not be enough. As they can earn 10 time more throught corruption!

This country should start teaching their new born, about ethics, about honesty, about duty, about honor, about basic right (like everyone is equals)

They should teach lying, stealing, cheating is very bad!

Then one day you will have a generation of honest people.

I thought the monks were doing this? lol Ahhhhhhhh maybe monks in other countries. Thailand is different.

[Searat7]

Thailand will never attain status of developed nation unless a complete top-to-bottom restructure of the RTP is undertaken, decentralising its command structure, and transferring its reporting to the Ministry of Justice, recruiting overseas advisors/trainers, imposing strict ethical guidelines, sacking every single one of the tens of thousands of criminals currently sitting in inactive posts, and providing a living wage to officers.

Start there, do it properly, end political interference and nepotistic postings, give it time to end the endemic corruption in all facets of Thai society and the billions and trillions of baht flowing freely from the public purse, and just maybe Thailand could then attain status of developed nation.

And then have all police sign a contract stating they will automatically go to jail for 5 years if caught taking any bribes or tea money

[Bender]

and let me add this generation is completely hopeless

http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1458195679

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/903741-bangkok-tessakit-officer-accused-of-taking-tourists-cash/?p=10541951

[worgeordie]

Where to start

regards Worgeordie

[MZurf]

Thailand will never attain status of developed nation unless a complete top-to-bottom restructure of the RTP is undertaken, decentralising its command structure, and transferring its reporting to the Ministry of Justice, recruiting overseas advisors/trainers, imposing strict ethical guidelines, sacking every single one of the tens of thousands of criminals currently sitting in inactive posts, and providing a living wage to officers.

Start there, do it properly, end political interference and nepotistic postings, give it time to end the endemic corruption in all facets of Thai society and the billions and trillions of baht flowing freely from the public purse, and just maybe Thailand could then attain status of developed nation.

And if they could do exactly the same with the armed forces and the judiciary they would have made the first meaningful step towards real reform of Thailand.

But alas.....

[WhizBang]

<snip>

Even though such reform would change Royal Thai Police for the better, the agency still lacks commanders willing to sacrifice their personal benefits for the greater good.

And this why reform will never happen and any proposed real reforms will be fought tooth and nail.

Same goes for the military.

[dominique355]

To become a developed country Thailand must reduce the power of the military and put them under strict control of the civil and elected government. Only Banana republics have one coup after the other, each general believing his education as a soldier qualifies him better to run a country than all educated politicians together.

[NongKhaiKid]

There is one national strategy that gets passed on from generation to generation and that's get into power, irrespective of the post or level, get all you can out of it while holding it against all comers.

[whiterussian]

Still playing in the little league compared to the 4 quadrillion dollar swindle pulled off by the developed nations

[jamesbrock]

And if they could do exactly the same with the armed forces and the judiciary they would have made the first meaningful step towards real reform of Thailand.

But alas.....

Yes, and yes!

And this why reform will never happen and any proposed real reforms will be fought tooth and nail.

Same goes for the military.

One can always hope. I'm sure people said the same thing about Singapore in the 50's...

There is one national strategy that gets passed on from generation to generation and that's get into power, irrespective of the post or level, get all you can out of it while holding it against all comers.

How true this appears to be. I, like many I'm sure, held high hopes that Prayuth was going to be different, but alas...

Edit: spelling

Edited March 18, 2016 by jamesbrock

[wabothai]

How about having a properly paid professional police force that will act without fear or favor.

A review of laws that appear out of step with developed nations across the globe.

Corruption, blatant or disguised, is not usually part of a developed nation.

Any one else want to add a few suggestions?

Apologies in advance for the long post, but I personally believe you got it in one.

For fear of repeating myself, nothing less than a complete top-to-bottom restructure of the RTP will be necessary for Thailand to move ahead.

The primary problem of the RTP, the primary cause of its endemic corruption, lies with its structure. The RTP is a state agency with a juristic person status under the prime minister’s command. The agency is divided into central and regional offices, all of which are under the responsibility of a single commander-in-chief, the Commissioner-General. The chain of command descends downwards to the police station level. The organisational structure is centralised, with a 250,000-strong force nationwide.

This organisational structure brings with it several problems, most of which contribute to corruption. The first problem, as you mentioned is the salary scale for police officers, which is very low compared with that of their foreign counterparts and even with the salaries paid to officials in similar Thai organisations such as the Department of Special Investigation, court prosecutors, or other officials involved in the criminal justice process. RTP officers holding a bachelor’s degree or better receiving an initial salary of only 8,340 baht (260 USD), compared with 17,560 baht (548 USD) earned by justice officials. Moreover, the entry-level salary of police officers with a sub-bachelor education is a mere 6,800 baht (212 USD). It's no wonder police resort to petty corruption, coercing bribes from the public or extorting money from traffic law violators, in order to make ends meet.

Part of the stated reason why the average salary of Thai policemen is so low is the sheer size of personnel at 250,000, making it difficult to initiate a wholesale pay rise to ensure all earn enough to meet rising living expenses. For example, if all policemen in the agency were to receive a 5,000 baht increase in monthly salary, the government would have to pay an additional 15 billion baht (420 million USD) annually. Of course if they sacked every one of the tens-of-thousands of officers sitting in 'inactive posts' that figure could be cut significantly.

Another problem with the centralised structure of the police force is that high-level officials in the central office can appoint officers at the regional level. Moreover, since there are more officers at the commissioned level than at lower levels, with the former being granted power to hire or fire the latter, the reasons for promotions or demotions are unrelated to work performance, but rather to the personal relationships of officers with higher-ranking officials. In addition, since the Royal Thai Police changed its name from the Police Department and came under the control Prime Minister’s Office in 2004, politicians have become much more involved in the appointment process of policemen.

The worst problem of all is the conspicuous purchase of positions within the agency, with the asking price for each position being revealed openly. Once those who bought their way up start working in their new positions, they will undergo a ‘payback’ period during which they extract bribes and protection money from illegal business operators to make up for the money ‘invested’ in buying their higher positions.

Structural reform of the Royal Thai Police toward a more decentralised system would not only cut the line of command and reduce widespread corruption among officers, but would allow for recruitment and postings to be awarded on merit, not based on nepotism. Such reform will be able to alleviate corruption problems since they are inextricably linked to a centralised police system that results in high-level officers having too much power. The unfortunate consequences of this are embezzlement of government funds, since the funds are allocated to a single agency; bribery from citizens at a high frequency and amounts, since the bribes are passed up to higher-ranked officials along the chain of command; and collection of protection money, which is also passed up the chain of command, from illegal business operators.

The distribution or separation of police power would be effective in partially severing the chain of command that in turn can discourage the passing of bribes. It would also reduce the power of high-level officials, making them unable to intervene in the appointment process of lower-ranked policemen, which in turn can prevent the purchases of positions that are one of the causes of bribery and protection money collection. Most importantly, the decentralisation of police power or the downsizing of the agency would result in a general increase in police salaries, weakening the oft-mentioned reason for corruption.

Even though such reform would change Royal Thai Police for the better, the agency still lacks commanders willing to sacrifice their personal benefits for the greater good.

Lots of talk going nowhere. It's all about F A C E , very simple, and the Developed West is working hard to become the same. F A C E B O O K.

[LannaGuy]

in developed nations democracy is a right, guarded and the law is dominant and has no fear nor favour Thailand is decades away

Edited March 18, 2016 by LannaGuy

[Jimbo2014]

Hubs and national strategies is unfortunately where the vision starts and ends. That in itself captures some of the shortcomings. Lack of freedom of the press. Poor rule of law. High corruption. Ineffective and damaging police force. Oh the list goes on.

[chainarong]

Thailand will always be regarded as an emerging 3rd world country , till the presence of the Military is removed from government , the very presence of a uniform in discussions or hovering in the background reminds anyone from the west of a totalitarian dictatorship and it doesn't matter what or how this is pitched, in the west military uniforms represent the military and are just that , military, not representing a government , Thailand now rides a slippery slope towards Totalitarian government with Prayut as commander in Chief , Democracy is just a catch word , bring on the students......................................................

[Balance]

Thailand will never attain status of developed nation unless a complete top-to-bottom restructure of the RTP is undertaken, decentralising its command structure, and transferring its reporting to the Ministry of Justice, recruiting overseas advisors/trainers, imposing strict ethical guidelines, sacking every single one of the tens of thousands of criminals currently sitting in inactive posts, and providing a living wage to officers.

Start there, do it properly, end political interference and nepotistic postings, give it time to end the endemic corruption in all facets of Thai society and the billions and trillions of baht flowing freely from the public purse, and just maybe Thailand could then attain status of developed nation.

Good start, but it is but one of 10 or 20 restructurings on the list. Thailand is currently hanging in between the horns of the proverbial Delima of a "developing" country and one that is still wedded to an oligarchic social and political structure dating back to the days of Rama I and II. Before reaching the status of a "developed" country it needs to finish putting both feet in the developing camp.

[jesimps]

One word......"Deterrent"

There isn't any here. Nobody seems bothered about calling people to account.

[SoFarAndNear]

There are many reason why Thailand can't reach this status. Unfortunately mention these reason or public discussing about them is against the law.

[jamesbrock]

Thailand will always be regarded as an emerging 3rd world country , till the presence of the Military is removed from government , the very presence of a uniform in discussions or hovering in the background reminds anyone from the west of a totalitarian dictatorship and it doesn't matter what or how this is pitched, in the west military uniforms represent the military and are just that , military, not representing a government , Thailand now rides a slippery slope towards Totalitarian government with Prayut as commander in Chief , Democracy is just a catch word , bring on the students......................................................

Yes, bring on the (socially connected) students indeed!

It's interesting how the New Zealand police—one of the police forces academics pushing for decentralisation hold up as an example—wore militarised uniforms, with officers being decorated with the same honours as soldiers (and power concentrated in the headquarters in the capital) before it was decentralised, and demilitarised, in the 1950's.

[Rama]

The one difference between 'developed' countries and the rest is the ability to get small contracts enforced in a timely and fair manner. Until this happens "influential figures" will have sway.

[dageurreotype]

How about having a properly paid professional police force that will act without fear or favor.

A review of laws that appear out of step with developed nations across the globe.

Corruption, blatant or disguised, is not usually part of a developed nation.

Any one else want to add a few suggestions?

Nah. Wouldn't work unless the military were also on board

[mcfish]

Change the mind set of don't think to much. You can't move forward if you're for ever stuck living in the moment

Edited March 18, 2016 by mcfish

[dageurreotype]

Without trawling through this done to death topic again. You have thousands upon thousands of laws already on your statute books. Enforce them. No, you won't. So stay in the Third World then. Your choice.