Chuwit warns shortages could lead to looting
Rak Prathet Thai Party chief Chuwit Kamolvisit has warned of chaos and possible looting as flood victims endure surging prices for consumer goods and the lack of necessary items.
He said many people in Ayutthaya province who were seriously affected by the flood had complained to him they had been abandoned to their troubles. People living outside the city of Ayutthaya had been cut off from electricity and water supply services, he said.
Many had decided to stay in their homes due to fear of robbery if they left.
Chuwit said speculation and the stocking up of necessities had raised the prices of consumer items dramatically, further hurting people already affected by the floods. The price of drinking water had risen from Bt7 a bottle to nearly Bt30, a small pack of instant noodles is up from Bt5 to Bt30, he said.
The prices of bricks were hiked from Bt3 or Bt4 each to Bt10-12, he said. Sandbags, necessary for building water barricades, are in short supply with prices rising to Bt80-100 a piece.
Necessities such as government survival bags are reaching only people who live in towns as there were no boats to take them to remote areas.
“[Some] boat owners have become blood suckers, charging flood-affected passengers as much as Bt500 per trip,” Chuwit said.
The government, including the Commerce Ministry, should utilise all its branches, both in the central and local administration, to deliver the necessities to people otherwise there could be a chaotic situation, panic and looting as people try to stock up on supplies, he said.