Govt: Bt10m flood bash is to say thanks, mend fences

[admin]

The government has earmarked Bt10 million for today's garden party held under the theme "Love Thailand, Forward Thailand" to thank all sides for flood relief efforts.

"The party's main objective is to show appreciation although reconciliation might be a by-product," PM's Office permanent secretary Tongthong Chandransu said yesterday.

About 500 guests have been invited and chief royal adviser General Prem Tinsulanond is scheduled to preside over the event.

Tongthong said the country could overcome the flood crisis because all sides had cooperated in the relief efforts.

Party organisers selected uplifting music to be played during the party in order to convey the government's gratefulness to all Thais, he said, noting the event would be broadcast live because not everyone could attend.

He said he was aware of critical views but decided the benefits of boosting confidence on flood control would justify the party.

He said due to the necessity to cap the guest list, the government opted to invite leaders of each institution, such as the House speaker in lieu of every lawmaker. A number of privy councillors, including Air Chief Marshal Chalit Pukbhasuk, Amphon Senanarong and Kamthon Sindhvananda, had accepted the invitation to the party.

In regard to the party's budget, about Bt3.5 million will cover the expense of food and facilities, and Bt6.5 million will be spent on lighting, the performing stage and the orchestra from Mahidol University's College of Music.

Deputy Prime Minister Yongyuth Wichaidit urged critics of the government to look to the future instead of dwelling on the past.

Yongyuth said those questioning the government's motive for the party should know that he too was a subordinate of Prem, saying their ties dated back to 1994.

"I always dress like Pa," he said in reference to Prem's Thai dress.

He said it was a misconception to portray the Abhisit Vejjajiva administration as being close to Prem and the present government as being distant.

He also stated that he did not want to talk about the past when the red shirts rallied in front of Prem's residence.

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Edited February 9, 2012 by FarangFarang

[FarangFarang]

Seems Forbes is not as amused by the party.

Thailand's Flood Relief Party Meets Tide Of Complaints

Say what you will about President Bush’s response to Hurricane Katrina (“Heck of a job, Brownie”), I don’t recall any post-disaster knees-up in Washington. The mood was far too sober, and the political blowback too strong. In Thailand, the opposite seems to be true. Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who took office last August, is throwing a garden party on Friday for ministers, politicians, tycoons and bureaucrats. The occasion is a thank-you for helping with flood relief efforts last year. Yingluck has presented the event as a confidence-boosting event entitled ‘Love Thailand, Thailand Marches On’. Never mind the government’s failure to map out a convincing solution to future floods. It’s unlikely that any new water management systems will be in place in time for the next monsoon. Industrial estates are busy constructing their own defences, but this isn’t a substitute for central floodways. Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva complained that Friday’s party would “hurt the feelings” of those affected by the floods. They may ‘Love Thailand’, but they’re still waiting for compensation for their losses.

In fact, Thailand has been marching in a circle, politically and economically, for several years. Political instability, social polarisation and public mismanagement has become the norm, priced into the assets that circulate among a gilded few. The feeble government response to the floods, which killed hundreds across a huge swath of central Thailand, only compounds the sense of a country set adrift. While the floods were an unprecedented natural disaster, with major consequences for global PC and auto companies, the flailing relief effort was all too familiar. Conflicting information sparked panicked evacuations in Bangkok, while rural districts waited in vain for supplies. Officials at the Flood Relief Operations Center repeatedly blamed a lack of coordination between competing agencies in charge of flood prevention. Yingluck announced this week that a unified command would take charge next time. Yet the balkanised nature of Thai governance seems baked into the system. Yingluck is too distracted and inexperienced to break this pattern.

Thai officials insist that foreign investors are still committed to Thailand, despite their massive flood-related losses. Honda recently slashed its profit forecast, blaming Thai floods and Japan’s earthquake, as well as the strong yen. Microsoft said PC shipments would be held back this quarter due to tight Thai hard-drive supplies. Some manufacturers have vowed to rebuild their Thai operations. Japanese officials say that Thailand remains an attractive manufacturing base, and that Japanese companies – the largest foreign investors in Thailand – are more likely to relocate within Thailand than to set up shop in other markets, in part because of the cluster of industries already present. These multinationals will remain in Thailand, for now. Alternative labor-intensive manufacturing hubs in Southeast Asia – Vietnam, Indonesia – aren’t quite there yet. But they eventually will be. And when they do it’s a safe bet that Thailand will still be mired in a political crisis of some kind.

Strikingly, for all the first-class industrial facilities in Thailand, there are few homegrown tech innovators. PC supply chains are entirely the purview of foreign companies whose investments generate jobs, exports and taxes, but none of the multiplier effects seen in Taiwan or Singapore. Instead, Thai corporations focus on domestic services and natural resources, not the competitive edge of electronics manufacturing. And government officials toast their failure to do their job properly. Party on, Yingluck.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/simonmontlake/2012/02/09/thailands-flood-relief-party-meets-tide-of-complaints/