Pheu Thai laws are questioned by the opposition.
On Thursday, the opposition parties attacked the world’s military expenditure distributions, claiming they went against Pheu Thai Party policy remarks on reducing and modernizing the armed forces.
Aekkarat Udomamnuay, a Move Forward Party ( MFP ) MP for Bangkok, stated on the second day of the budget bill debate for 2024 that Pheu Thai is in charge of reforming the armed forces to ensure they are professional and replace mandatory conscription with voluntary recruitment.
However, he added,” I wonder if the armed forces will be able to reshape themselves when I look at the Defence Ministry’s budget allocations.”
He stated that the Defense Ministry has asked for 198 billion ringgit, an increase of 3.8 billion from the fiscal year 2023.
Spending on military workers has increased by 55 % annually, and in particular, the military has spent about 64 % of the total budget, according to a breakdown of budget spending, he said.
Is the Defense Ministry attempting to enlarge the military forces? Is this going against its plan to reduce the size of the military? Mr. Aekkarat questioned, adding that the cost of military personnel includes compensation and clothing.
The Defense Ministry’s budget allocations were frequently cut during previous financial crises, according to solutions.
The ministry’s budget for that year was reduced by 21 % from the prior year during the 1999 financial crisis, and its Budget for 2022 was slashed by 6 % over the course of the Covid- 19 pandemic.
The Defence Ministry has sought more than 198 billion baht, away 2 % from about 194 billion in the previous year, even though the current government claims the nation’s economy is still in poor design, according to the resources.
Mr. Aekkarat continued by saying that a budget planning of 565 million baht for placement allowances for military personnel not decreases and that there are more than 2, 000 commanders at the Defense Ministry who are comparable to directors-general at various companies.
Nevertheless, he claimed that there are only about ten directors common in each ministry. Is Pheu Thai actually trying to reduce the size of the military makes? He questioned once more.
Mr. Aekkarat even criticized the Defense Ministry’s covert resources, claiming that the law forbids parliament from reviewing it.
The Defense Ministry’s resources spending on arms purchasing has been cut by 2.4 billion ringgit, according to Chayapol Sathondee, an MFP MP for Bangkok, primarily because the government has chosen” a smaller down payment and a long-term payment plan.”
According to Mr. Chayapol, the government made a 13 % down payment on the purchase of wings in the 2023 fiscal year and 9 % of the same amount in 2024.
However, he said that the government may be required to pay off long-term loan worth 57 billion baht, which will double in 2023.
Romdon Panjor, an MFP record MP, concentrated on the funds for addressing the turmoil in the deep South, stating that it has been allocated about 25 billion baht, or 6.5 % of the past year. More than 1 billion ringgit should be cut from the budget, he suggested.
More than 5 billion baht have been set aside for the Internal Security Operations Command ( Isoc ), Mr. Romdon continued.
He asserted that more than 3.5 billion rmb may be connected to “ghost” employees who had never worked in the area and asked Isoc to explain.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin responded to criticism from the opposition by saying that work from all sides have helped to calm the turmoil in the heavy South.
” I think Isoc also wants to bring peace back to the area. Isoc’s resources spending is also something I’m willing to consider, Mr. Srettha said.
3.48 trillion ringgit are sought by the funds. It was supposed to go into effect on October 1 but was postponed a few months after the vote so that the coalition government may establish itself second.
A 72-member House committee will be formed to review the costs after the conversation, which ended yesterday, is put to a vote today.
As of media time, no cabinet members or government MPs had responded to the opponent’s criticism of the military downsizing.