Barbs on Yingluck gone missing from budget debate
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Thursday, the seconday of the budget debate, saw an exchange of barbs beween coalition and opposition lawmakers focusing on how and why Prime Minister Yingluck Shinsawatra had gone missing for two consecutive days.
Yingluck earlier said she would not travel to inspect the floods in the South in order to devote full attention to the budget debate which started on Wednesday.
But Democrat MP Boonyod Sooktinthai wryly filed the Yingluck’s truancy report from the House floor, prompting protests from the coalition bench.
On the first day of the debate for the second reading of the Budget Bill, lawmakers spent more than 13 hours before passing just one provision of the bill prescribing for a total spending of Bt2.38 trillion.
As the debate moved on to another provision pertaining to the Bt420 billion central funds destined for mid-year allocations, Boonyod lashed out at Yingluck for playing truant.
In retaliation, Pheu Thai MP Kiart-udom Menasawat requested House Speaker Somsak Kiartsuranont to order the Democrat to withdraw his sarcastic remarks.
After a war of words, Boonyod agreed to have his remarks removed from the records but not before his parting shot.
“I agree to withdrawal my remarks in order to prove the double standard on the House speaker’s conduct towards the opposition,” he said.
Democrat MP Sukit Attopakorn said he was puzzled why Yingluck was a no-show at the budget debate which she cited as reason not to inspect the flood-hit areas in the South.
Sukit said the prime minister had no justification to absent from the budget debate.
The Nation
