Bus terminals in Northeast packed with returning voters

[Coss]

Link

 

The Nakhon Ratchasima Bus Terminal was buzzing yesterday as voters from the Northeast returned to their hometowns to cast ballots in today's national election.

 

The province's new bus terminal on Mitraparp Highway, providing travellers with at least 1,600 bus trips per day on 84 routes to 19 provinces, was packed with people. It caused provincial transport officer Manas Rungpin to ask private bus operators to provide more rides.

 

However, several sections of Mitraparp Highway from Kaeng Khoi in Saraburi to Pak Chong in Nakhon Ratchasima were under repair, which caused traffic jams. The travel time for the 256km stretch from Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima, which usually takes 3 hours and 30 minutes, had been taking about 4-5 hours since Friday night, Manas said.

 

One 28-year-old worker, Mayuree Khokklang, who went to vote at Phimai in Nakhon Ratchasima, said the Election Commission should implement a measure to help voters with their expenses when travelling to vote.

 

In Khon Kaen, the provincial bus terminal was also packed. Terminal official Phaithoon Srisakulthai said the terminal normally had 20,000 travellers passing though per day but yesterday there were about 35,000-40,000 travellers, prompting officials to ask bus operators to make additional trips.

 

Meanwhile, a woman was arrested in Maha Sarakham yesterday for alleged vote-buying. Thongphul Sriyowong was caught in possession of Bt6,400 cash in the Northeast province's Muang district following a tip-off people were bringing money to buy votes there.

 

The suspect told police three unnamed men delivered the money to her at the village and led police to the men's car, but they saw police and fled.

 

Police then seized the car and found a total of Bt394,285 in cash in Bt100 notes in a plastic bag, a 9mm pistol with 10 rounds of ammunition and a list of canvassers and villagers as well as some leaflets of a Maha Sarakham Constituency 1 candidate.

 

Thongphul was initially charged with vote-buying and police will investigate the case further.

 

In Angthong, Muang district chief Somchai Anawatchakul said that from 8am to noon yesterday the district office had issued over 100 national ID cards to people who wanted their ID cards so they could vote today, and that in the past two weeks 2,500 people had got ID cards there.

 

In a related development, floods in Sukhothai province forced eight polling stations in Constituencies 1 and 2 of Muang and Sri Samrong districts to be moved yesterday.

 

In Phichit, authorities had planned to move polling stations in five districts at risk of being flooded, provincial election director Thanaboon Sinmana said.

 

He said the preaching halls of temples with raised floors would be turned into polling stations if floodwater overflowed the Yom River and affected the five provinces in the river basin. Meanwhile, authorities rushed to release water from the Yom into the Nan River yesterday.

 

 

 

 

[Flashermac]

A Thai colleague from Issan told me his neighbour said her student daughter had to give her ID card to the Pheu Thai canvasser. It would be returned at her village so she could vote and recieve her "pay". True democracy ... Chicago style?

 

p.s. Most Thais never bother with changing their household registration when they move to Bangkok. They still legally "live" upcountry, even though they may have been here for decades. That is why the census figures show Bangkok's population at around 60% of what it actually is.

 

[cavanami]

I should be getting the official report from the tee rak upon returning...