House Panel Inspects Rice Mills, Checks For Graft

[Coss]

Regardless of when the no-confidence debate will be held, the Opposition is set to launch a stinging attack against the Yingluck government over alleged corruption in implementation of its rice-pledging scheme.

The Democrat Party has already put the spotlight on loopholes in the scheme calling for public feedback and launching House inquiries. They have fired questions at economic ministers over implementation of the scheme, which has cost Bt4 trillion in taxpayers' money and risks losing Bt1.5 trillion per year - but has failed to shore up prices in the world market, or help all Thai farmers.

The Opposition says the government has caused an oversupply of rice from its "utter failure" in stock management and opening up loopholes that allow capitalists to seek vested interest in the scheme.

Implementation procedures in the scheme have been lax, they have said, leading to a grand scale of corruption through methodical exploitation of farmers' rights by capitalists. The Opposition suspects quantities of rice bought under the pledging scheme may be imported from neighbouring countries by businesspeople.

In the latest development, members of the House committee on Economic Development - including Bangkok Democrat MP Chanin Rungsaeng, the committee chairman, Phitsanulok MP Dr Warong Dejjkijwikrom, Democrat MP Apirak Kosayodhin, the shadow Commerce Minister - led an inspection team last Friday to probe irregularities in the rice pledging scheme in Ayutthaya.

They looked into three procedures before rice is delivered to consumers: from farmers to rice mills; from mills to central warehouses; and from warehouses to auctions.

There are 26 rice-pledging centres in Ayutthaya in which a total of 627,678 tonnes was pledged from March 1 to August 6. The Opposition has to check if there have been irregularities from when rice from the fields arrives at the mills. First, they have to check if the people who bring rice to pledge are actually farmers or not. Random checks have also been carried out to see if pledging documents have been countersigned by farmers, representatives, rice millers, Public Warehouse Organisation (PWO) officials. Details such as car licence plates, dates and times that were recorded were checked to see if they matched CCTV cameras.

The PWO regulations require rice millers under the scheme to have CCTV cameras installed to cross-check information with that recorded on rice pledging documents.

"PWO regulations state that rice millers under the scheme must have CCTV cameras recording rice-pledging procedures from start to finish," Warong said. "To easily check irregularities, we can just look at footage recorded to see if it is in accordance with information written in pledging documents.

"Details about trucks that transport rice to rice millers must be recorded, such as licence plates and what time they come.

"If rice millers do not have correct information, they are suspicious. We do not need to inquire any further from farmers because farmers and capitalists may collude and prepare themselves for questioning."

Three rice mills were found to have technical problems with their CCTV cameras: Thepmongkol Rice Mill in Bang Sai, Kaset Rungruang Rice Mill in Lat Bualuang, Liang Huak Rice Mill in Lat BuaLuang. Cameras at the first two rice mills did not have enough memory to check three days back. Other cameras allegedly had computer malfunctions.

 

 

Somsak Ekpinijpittaya, CEO of Thepmongkol Rice Mill - the first mill checked by the committee said the fact his mill had technical problems did not mean there was corruption. "Regulations on installing closed circuit cameras are imposed to control rice-pledging procedures in the beginning of the programme. To record the scheme from start to finish, we need to pour in money to have a camera with a larger memory. [but] it's more reasonable to check on farmers - how much rice they grow and how much rice is pledged,'' he said.

A black CCTV camera screen is an issue the committee has learnt about from its investigations in Ayuthaya. Tomorrow, they are due to conduct more checks in mills in Saraburi.

 

 

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