Transport Minister may apply Article 44 to state projects
The Transport Ministry is considering the use of Article 44 in the provisional charter to speed up infrastructure projects, minister Prajin Juntong said on Thursday.
The article gives the junta broad discretion to issue orders and undertake actions deemed appropriate for national reform.
In a bid to bring several projects initiated during this administration to fruition, he said he might apply the article to ongoing issues, as it could serve to speed up the projects.
The Transport Minister is understood to have been referring to the replacement of the Department of Civil Aviation, which has been downgraded, by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
Many of the ministry’s development projects face slow progress. Prajin said that unexpected problems requiring urgent correction have impeded the ministry’s efforts to execute its projects.
Among the several projects the minister wishes to accomplish within this administration are the expansion of Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and U-Tapao airports; the construction of the dual-track railway, new motorways and expressways; and the purchase of NGV buses.