Spoiled rice in Chachoengsao warehouse
During the inspection of the rice bought by the government, which is stored in a warehouse in Phanom Sarakham (Chachoengsao province), rice was found that was seriously spoiled.
Two senior Commerce Department officials have been sentenced to transfer for failing to provide credible explanations for irregularities found in rice inspections.
Yingluck: I'm not running
Former Prime Minister Yingluck has vowed not to flee the country now that the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) has advised the Public Prosecution Service to summon her for dereliction of duty.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission has decided after months of investigation: Prime Minister Yingluck is guilty of dereliction of duty and should be summoned. Rumors are circulating that she is fleeing the country.
The negative news about the government's rice stocks continues. The inspection teams currently checking rice warehouses and silos have already encountered a mountain of suspicious conditions in XNUMX provinces, such as missing rice, rotten rice or rice that is crawling with weevils.
Rice stock inspections: Loss of quality and weevil
The deteriorating rice and weevil-riddled rice found on the first day of the army's inspections bodes ill for the rest of the rice the previous government has been buying up over the past two years.
91.000 sacks of rice worth 69 million baht have disappeared from a warehouse in Pathum Thani. The army yesterday raided the warehouse that stores rice bought by the government under the mortgage system after a tip-off.
Cloth falls on controversial rice mortgage system
The costly and corruption-ridden rice mortgage system will not be continued. It will be replaced by a program that directly benefits farmers. The military authorities are calling for a reduction in production costs, the use of organic fertilizers and the formation of cooperatives.
The land distribution in Thailand is quite skewed. Ten percent of the population owns the most land; 90 percent barely or is landless. Bangkok Post calls on the junta to repair this unjust relationship, something that successive governments failed to do.
It will take at least five to six years for the estimated loss plus interest burden of the controversial rice mortgage system to be eliminated. The financial burden on the country also limits the ability of the Ministry of Finance to guarantee loans from government departments.
Thailand again the world's largest rice exporter
Thanks to the lower price of Thai rice, the lack of price intervention and the depreciation of the baht, Thailand has managed to regain its position as the world's largest rice exporter.
News from Thailand – April 23, 2014
Today in News from Thailand:
• Top civil servant calls for resistance against government misdeeds
• Search started for missing Karen activist
• Community service for Praewa (minivan accident, nine deaths)
News from Thailand – April 20, 2014
Today in News from Thailand:
• Bungee platform collapses: two dead, one injured
• Finance wants to take control of the budget for rice farmers again
• Extra security in Khao San on request of the Israeli embassy
Vicha: I am not an enemy of Prime Minister Yingluck
Vicha Mahakhun, a member of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, defends himself against the accusation that he is biased. On the other hand, he is extremely accommodating to Prime Minister Yingluck, who is accused of negligence as chairman of the National Rice Policy Committee.
News from Thailand – April 11, 2014
Today in News from Thailand:
• Advice to scrap companies: Look, this is what explosives look like, so don't touch them
• Let's Be Happy, US ambassador sings on YouTube
• Yingluck: 'Seven dangerous days' should become 'happy days'
Prime Minister Yingluck tries to buy time in rice case
Surprisingly, but it didn't last very long. Prime Minister Yingluck herself went to the National Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday to hand over her defense against the allegation of negligence.
Bangkok Post expects chaotic April month
Bangkok Post expects political pressure to rise to a breaking point next month. Two procedures threaten the position of Prime Minister Yingluck and her cabinet. In the worst case, they have to leave the field and a 'political vacuum' is created.