Public must play strong role: Somkid
Play
Deputy PM also warns conflicts will occur if the economy isn't fixed
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER Somkid Jatusripitak has urged the public and the private sector to help the government reform the country and turn it into a “people’s state”.
In a people’s state, the citizens have a duty to learn and educate themselves about the country’s administration while the government has only a guiding role, he said.
“You want to fight corruption and issue so many laws, but the people are not aware of the problem – thick-faced people continue to misbehave,” he said. “It is not only government officials who take kickbacks but also businessmen who pay the bribes.’’
Somkid said public participation in the fight against corruption and the people’s movement were the keys to the reform process.
He spoke at a seminar titled “Thailand’s Economy and Politics” organised by the National Legislative Assembly in Chon Buri yesterday.
Somkid said when he was an adviser to the National Council for Peace and Order, he thought that if the government’s work methodologies continued the same way, the country would face big hassles.
He had economic policies secretly devised so he could immediately implement them when he became deputy PM.
He said after taking office he had instructed every government agency to focus on controlling budget spending.
He said the purchasing power at the base of the economy was weak, leading to the poor performance of business conglomerates.
“If the situation continues, social and economic problems will erupt, which will lead to national conflicts. The poor will think that the government ignores their plight, making them vulnerable to being exploited,’’ he said.
That’s why he opted for the Bt1-million Village Fund and the Bt5-million Tambon Fund. “This is to sow seeds to bring about sustainable projects and not to stimulate the economy. This will create inner economic strength,’’ he said.
He said he told Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha that the country needed a balance between an export and a domestic economy. “Over the past 30 years, we gave too much weight to exports and ignored the domestic economy,” he said.
“Exports grew because the world economy boomed. We were pleased with our GDP [gross domestic product] without looking at our domestic strength or taking into account our agricultural strength, which is wrong.”
He said balancing the export and domestic economy was difficult because the country’s administrative system was outdated and placed too much emphasis on exports.
“Our backbone on exports has degenerated and needs to be reinforced with steel,” he said.
The deputy PM said the Board of Investment must adjust by persuading investors not to relocate their production bases at expanding industrial zones at Map Ta Phut and Laem Chabang.
“Industries that get BOI privileges should be green ones. Look at how South Korea, Japan and Italy do it,’’ he said.
Somkid said state information disclosure was important to development. The government must have an information technology centre that gathers important information.
“The PM has instructed that we should have all links to information but we don’t have this centre due to some court cases. We have an agency in charge of the digital economy but it takes care of only state bidding,’’ he said.
Somkid said once he steps down from his post as deputy PM, he would not return to politics.
“I did not even think that I would return again. I thought that I had quit politics for good. But it was fate that I have to come back to work at a difficult period. It is not easy but I regard it as my duty.’’
