Anutin pledges full scrutiny after signing ฿400bn loan decree
Anutin says the ฿400bn domestic loan will carry low interest, avoid exchange-rate risk and directly benefit Thai people
Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said he has signed the draft emergency decree authorising the Finance Ministry to borrow ฿400 billion to address the impact of the energy crisis and support Thailand’s energy transition.
Speaking at Government House at 6.10pm on May 6, Anutin said the decree would next be published in the Royal Gazette. A project-screening committee will then be established, chaired by the permanent secretary of the Finance Ministry.
He said all proposed projects must be screened by the permanent secretary and must comply with the objectives of the loan decree. Anutin added that he, as prime minister, would be responsible for ensuring the money is used transparently.
“I want to stress that I am the head of the government who has just signed this decree. Therefore, every baht and every satang of this loan must be supervised by me to ensure it is not misused and that there is no leakage at all,” Anutin said.
He said he regarded the responsibility as an honour and pledged that the ฿400 billion would be closely monitored by himself and the Cabinet.
“Not a single satang must slip away, not even the smallest amount, into anything that does not benefit the people. Everything must be transparent, accountable, free from collusion and solely for the people,” he said.
Asked whether credit rating agency Moody’s had expressed concern over Thailand’s loan decree, Anutin said the real burden for the government was interest payments, but the borrowing would carry a very low interest rate because it would be raised entirely in Thai baht.
He said this meant there would be no exchange-rate risk, no need to raise the borrowing ceiling, and the move would also support liquidity among financial institutions lending to the government. Such loans, he added, would certainly not become non-performing loans and would not require heavy risk provisions.
Anutin said the cost of interest was almost incomparable with the opportunities the loan would create for the public.
He said the money would reach people directly, rather than being spent on projects that might take five to seven years to show results. The aim, he said, was to reduce people’s cost of living while improving their quality of life.
