Populism, the opiate of a 'drugged' people

[Nervous God]

yep

[LizardKing]

[Flashermac]

Govt under pressure to reform tax structure

 

 

The government is being challenged to reform the tax structure to show it is serious about welfare for the poor following its proposal to subsidise bus, rail and electricity charges.

 

Academics called on the government yesterday to consider tax reforms to disprove the critics who claim the latest proposals are just part of an election campaign stunt.

 

[color:red]Narong Petpraset, an economist at Chulalongkorn University, said the government should do better than imitate Thaksin Shinawatra's populist policies. It should set up a welfare state.[/color]

 

Tax reforms are needed if the government is to enable a welfare state which provides people with the services it has promised, he said.

 

[color:red]Less than 10 million people today pay individual income and corporate taxes.[/color]

 

[color:red]Mr Narong said there is no such thing as "welfare for all". Welfare is paid for by taxes.[/color]

 

[color:red]If people are not aware that welfare provided by the state is paid for by taxes, measures rolled out to help them will be branded as "populist", he said.[/color]

 

"I wish the Democrat-led administration can do better than Thaksin and go beyond the populist policy to create a welfare state," he said.

 

Mr Narong's comments follow the government's suggestion on Tuesday to subsidise bus and rail fares and electricity rates for the poor on a permanent basis. The proposal was greeted by immediate scepticism as the general elections are expected within the year.

 

The cabinet has resolved to extend free public bus and rail travel and waive electricity bills for the poor for a further six months to the end of this year. It is considering making the waivers permanent.

 

Mr Narong said the country's spending plan stands to be affected if the government fails to review the tax structure.

 

Bandit Thanachaisetthawut, of the labour non-governmental organisation, Arom Pongpangan Foundation, said proposed long-term measures for the poor will amount to just "mega-populist" gestures if the government stops short of revising the tax structure to boost incomes.

 

"The measure may help reduce the gap, but the government needs to look for ways to raise incomes to make it sustainable," Mr Bundit said.

 

Thawee Surarittikul, a political scientist at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University, said the renewed measures to help the poor are more of an election gimmick than an attempt at sustainable welfare.

 

He said the government is gearing up for a general election and is expected to produce similar offers during its remaining months in office.

 

Mr Thawee said it is possible the Democrat Party's platform will shift to supporting a welfare state as the elections draw near.

 

Chonlawit Jianjit, a social scientist at Srinakharinwirote University, said the measures are bad for the poor and will spoil them.

 

"They will wait for state help. We saw that with the Thaksin regime when communities were really weakened," Mr Chonlawit said.

 

He warned the measures will affect the government spending over the next 12 months since they are not part of the budget plan.

 

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva insisted yesterday the fare and electricity waivers were proposed with the intention to tackle poverty, not to win a popularity contest.

 

He said it will be decided in six months if they will become permanent.

 

Tackling economic inequities is part of the prime minister's proposed road map to national reconciliation.

 

Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said the government will study the impact of the measures on the government's budget spending.

 

He said the implementation of the measures on a permanent basis requires careful thought.

 

"We have to see if we have the budget to shoulder the expenses," he said.

 

He said the government will conduct a study to find out whether the number of subsidised units should be lowered to ensure the electricity cuts benefit those who need it.

 

Mr Korn said the Energy Ministry has been instructed to study the possibility of separating consumers of cooking gas into two groups: household and industry.

 

Household consumers would pay less and industries pay more.

 

"The government has to take care of the poor and the underprivileged," he said. "The economic gap is there and if there is a way to bridge it, then we are obliged to do so."

 

 

 

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[LizardKing]

Sounds pretty much in line with what the reds profess to want. And that's pretty much in line with textbook Marx, which we all know does not work. Much the same as the opposite: unrestrained capitalism.

 

They *really* need to let Abhisit and Korn work this out and make the mess that is the Thai economy actually work...

 

Those guys are certainly not "God's gift" to anything, but they at least have a clue. Unlike any other Thai politicians right now...