PM Prayut orders inspection of wrongly graded rice

[webfact]

PM orders inspection of wrongly graded rice

 

BANGKOK, 28 July 2017 (NNT) – The Prime Minister has ordered an inspection following reports that a mill in Ang Thong province labeled high quality rice as low grade, asserting that the evaluation and auctioning of state rice stocks must be transparent. 

Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha has stated his government has made it a priority to process rice stocks in a just and transparent fashion and that any lapses in oversight will be inspected. He labeled accusations of corruption so far as political moves. 

Director-General of the Department of Foreign Trade Duangporn Rodphaya explained that inspections have taken place after reports that 1 in 5 rice mounds in Ang Thong were wrongly graded according to standards set by the Rice Policy and Management Commission in January.

 

Authorities have found rice not adhering to grading standards auctioned off in March. She added that rice from the Worachote Silo was put to auction using outdated grading criteria but there were no bidders at the auction. 

The director-general confirmed that her department is keeping a close eye on the situation as an oversupply in the market has made consumers sensitive to wrongly graded rice.

 

-- nnt 2017-07-28

[colinneil]

Process rice stocks in a just and transparent fashion.

Priceless comment, when is anything done here in a just and fair fashion???

Answer..... NEVER.

[Misterwhisper]

Ah, I see. The rice scams are alive and well as ever. So it wasn't only a "Yingluck" thing...

[SOUTHERNSTAR]

1 minute ago, Misterwhisper said:

Ah, I see. The rice scams are alive and well as ever. So it wasn't only a "Yingluck" thing...

The question is will he be forced to repay losses? No bad idea sorry. Generals are not the same as politicians and thus can idemnify themselves against these claims. Just wait and see the losses to be made on the highcspeed trains. It will be make the rice look like small change.

[Srikcir]

22 hours ago, webfact said:

a mill in Ang Thong province labeled high quality rice as low grade, asserting that the evaluation and auctioning of state rice stocks must be transparent. 

I find this accusation a little confusing as to the credibility of a mill to evaluate rice quality and why anyone cares.

 

As I understand, rice mills act as rice brokers that resell rice to distributors. To that end mills might be tempted collude with distributors to undervalue rice stockpiles, underpay the rice owners/farmers, then resell as high value rice to reap excessive profits at the expense of the rice owners. 

 

To prevent such potential corruption, official rice grading for government rice stockpiles is done by independent rice surveyors under supervision of the rice inspection committee that reports to the Rice Policy Committee chaired by the PM (Prayut since May 2014). This was the inspection process done by Jirachai Moonthongroy, inspector-general at the PM's Office, who led the 52nd inspection teams ordered by Prayut in July 2014 to confirm the quality of Yingluck's pledge rice stockpile.

 

However, the Prayut government has on several occasions disputed its own rice inspector's evaluations, claiming rice to be of lower quality in rice government stockpiles (http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/surveyors-block-ministrys-attempt-transport-rotten-rices-warehouse-make-fertilisers/ ; http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30250374) for government rice sales. In any case the government should not rely on mill rice evaluations and insist its own evaluation process be followed as guide for sale. Failure to do so defeats the government's own transparency system to assure that the Thai taxpayer gets proper value for government purchased rice.

 

So in the case of the Ang Thong province rice stockpile, was there a government rice audit of the subject rice and how does it match what the mill is claiming as to quality? The government prevails and End of Issue. Charge the mill with criminal deception.

 

If there was no government rice audit, then there's a possible dereliction of duty by the government for exposing the sale to potential corruption - a sale in which the Thai taxpayer will be harmed. Obviously, the government needs to do its job irrespective of what a mill may claim.

.

 

[tomta]

Pravit Rohjanaphruk of Khaosod had this to say in a Facebook Post: "A Voice TV reporter tweeted saying a soldier shouted expletive at her and other reporters and threatened to confiscate their cameras while reporting about government's rice allegedly selling at a much lower rate than market price. Hail Prayuth's men in uniform and Juntaland!"