People’s party readies 30 MPs to grill government over budget bill

The opposition People’s party has lined up about 30 MPs to grill the government over its budget bill for the 2027 fiscal year and an additional of 10.3 billion baht budget this year to be used to compensate border villagers affected by the war between Thai and Cambodian troops late last year.

Sirikanya Tansakul, deputy leader of the party, who will spearhead the opposition side of the debate on the budget bill in parliament, said that there are several questionable government policies and projects that warrant close scrutiny.

She cited some examples, including the 30% increase in budget for the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES Ministry), especially for the National DES Committee whose budget was doubled, giving rise to the suspicion that the increase may be used to fund the extension of the controversial ‘TH-AI Passport’ project.

The DES minister is Chaichanok Chidchob, son of Newin Chidchob, widely viewed as the de facto leader of the Bhumjaithai party.

Sirikanya said that the budgets allocated for some governmental agencies were slashed by two-thirds of what they received last year, raising concerns about whether the substantial cut will affect public services.

She also made an observation about the 200 billion baht, of a 400 billion baht loan, to be used to fund Thailand’s migration from a heavy dependence on fossil fuels to alternative clean and renewable energy, noting that this money may overlap with the budget allocated to the Energy Conservation Promotion Fund of the Energy Ministry.

Overall, Sirikanya said the government’s mismanagement of the national finances has reached a point that the “hidden and festering financial problem” is about to burst.