By Thai Newsroom Reporters
THE DEMOCRATS TODAY (May 6) dared the Pheu Thai-led government to depose Bank of Thailand Governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput for standing in the way of the questionable digital wallet project so they could go ahead with it unthwarted.
Ramet Ratanachaweng, spokesperson of the opposition party, dared the Pheu Thai-led government in general and Pheu Thai-attached Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin in particular to immediately dismiss the central bank’s governor who had earlier issued a contrarian remark on the much-heralded, yet-delayed populist handout project.
“If the government concluded that honest remarks made by the central bank’s governor were practically tantamount to severe misconduct or deficiency in supposedly doing his duty, the government should dare to dismiss him now,” the Democrat spokesperson said.
Ramet was apparently responding to the recent event in which Pheu Thai leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra, daughter of de facto party boss-cum-convict on parole Thaksin Shinawatra, read out a prepared statement to take to task the central bank’s governor for virtually posing himself as an obstacle to national economic development efforts, given his contrarian comments on the Pheu Thai-initiated 10,000-baht digital wallet project.
Suthiput had contended that the populist handout campaign could possibly unnecessarily incur more public debt to the government, given a planned borrowing of a sum of 172.3 billion baht from the Bank for Agriculture & Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) as a state-run bank primarily obliged to provide financial support for farmers nationwide.
The central bank’s governor had advised not as many as 50 million Thais nationwide be granted the 10,000-baht digital wallet each and only those currently categorised as recipients to state welfare cards and “fragile” groups of people be eligible to it so that the government could adequately spare some “fiscal space” for emergency, necessity-based expenditure in the future.
Under the populist handout campaign, each of the 50 million Thai nationals aged 16 or over may buy a maximum of 10,000 baht worth of non-luxury merchandise from grocery stores or food from restaurants and food stalls via their digital wallet in the boundaries of their home district within a six-month period beginning in the fourth quarter of this year.
The Pheu Thai-led government plans to split a total of 500 billion baht in funding for the digital wallet project into three batches including 175 billion baht and 152.7 billion baht from the government’s budget for the current fiscal year and next fiscal year respectively, plus the 172.3 billion baht “borrowed” money from BAAC.
Meanwhile, the Democrat spokesperson said his partisan colleagues at parliament will undoubtedly oppose legislation allegedly designed by the Pheu Thai, core of the coalition government, to trim the legal power of the central bank’s governor with respect to his views on the populist handout campaign.
Ramet said the central bank’s governor is essentially bound to express his check-and-balance views freely and independently, regardless of any government whims.
“It is a matter of an internationally-upheld principle under which the freedom of the head of a central bank is unambiguously sheltered from all political influences,” he said.
Though the Pheu Thai would almost certainly prefer to see Sethaput kept out of the way, they do not dare to dismiss him for fear of public protests not only from among government critics but those of the de facto Pheu Thai boss who has been allegedly pulling the strings behind the coalition government.
CAPTIONS:
Top and Front Page: Bank of Thailand Governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput. Photos: Thai Rath
Insert: Democrat Party spokesman Ramet Ratanachaweng. Photo: Thai Rath
Also read: Paetongtarn defended for saying central bank independence an ‘obstacle’
Commerce chambers oppose nationwide 400-baht daily minimum wage
NACC to watch over farmers’ purchase of pesticides, fertilisers via digital wallet
Police rushing to expand probe after 14-year-old boy was caught smuggling drugs
Another damaged manhole cover found in Lat Phrao
Sheffield Wednesday survives Championship final game
FEATURE: A Tale of Thai-Owned Foxes and Owls in England
As the global Arms Bazaar booms, Travel & Tourism pays the price
One Reply to “Govt dared to dismiss Central Bank Governor over digital wallet row”