Prawit allows opening of more pawnshops in deep South

Fourth Army Area Commander Lt-General Piyawat Nakwanit said Prawit hoped the pawnshops would help local people deal with urgent financial needs.
Prawit, who is also the defence minister, believed some of the violent incidents were a result of the dire financial situation of some locals, who were enticed to cause disturbance in society in return for money for emergency needs such as school expenses when new semesters started, Piyawat said.
Currently, there are government pawnshops only in Pattani province’s Sungai Kolok district and in Yala downtown, the southern Army chief added.
He said the Interior Ministry is now in the process of making it easier to open pawnshops in the deep South, as compared to the long current process.
He said pawnshops in the deep South would be supervised by provincial committees headed by the provincial governors and the private sector would be allowed to invest. However, pawnshops in the deep South would collect fees instead of interest, as collecting interest would be against Islamic teachings.