Coupons won't replace free tablets: Chaturon
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Education Minister Chaturon Chaisang has downplayed reports that the government will offer a cash coupon worth Bt3,000 in place of a tablet computer for each student.
“It’s just an idea. It’s not a conclusion,” he said during his working trip to France.
He also explained that even if cash coupons were handed out, they would be given only to those students planning to buy tablets, perhaps with better specifications, for themselves. Other students would still get free tablet computers from the government, he said.
“Some wealthier parents may want a better device for their children, so some officials proposed the coupon option,” Chaturon said.
He dismissed rumours that the coupon proposal had been prompted by the delayed procurement of tablets over the past two years.
He said the Education Ministry planned to review the procurement process over the last two fiscal years to identify obstacles and disadvantages and to address problems such as delays.
The tablet procurement is part of the government’s One Tablet PC Per Child Project, a much-touted election promise made by the ruling Pheu Thai Party.
