The National Council for Peace and Order has asked the government to speed up its work in six major areas.
At a joint meeting yesterday, the NCPO said the first area of work that the government must accelerate is mapping out strategies to deal with the four main problems facing the country.
These are economic problems, including the high cost of living and the price of agricultural products; corruption, which must be tackled through concrete measures; crime, particularly the illegal drug trade; and social “re-regulation”.
The NCPO said concrete indicators are also needed to assess the government's work in dealing with the problems while forging ahead with sustainable development for the future.
The second area of work that must be sped up is the implementation of measures to ease the financial problems of people on low-incomes, such as policies to slash electricity and water bills for vulnerable groups, the NCPO said.
The problem of street beggars was highlighted as the third area that needs urgent work. The NCPO has recommended the Social Development and Human Security Ministry and other related state agencies explore ways to end street begging.
The NCPO said measures to resolve the problem should be inclusive and address the root cause of why people are begging, alongside government efforts to regulate the beggars.
The fourth issue the government has been asked to focus on is overhauling its system for receiving and processing public complaints.
The NCPO wants the Interior Ministry's Damrongtham Centre to come up with more practical measures to deal with people's complaints.
The NCPO said the centre should rate the levels of problems it handles, while keeping the public informed about its work through numerous communication channels.
Work to end conflicts between voluntary foundations providing rescue services to the public was highlighted as the fifth area to be addressed.
The NCPO asked the Interior Ministry to ensure all foundations follow legal requirements on recruiting volunteers. The National Police Office and the Public Health Ministry have also been told to help ensure the foundations deliver quality services.
The last area of work the NCPO wants government to speed up is the handling of water pollution in Bangkok's Saen Saep canal. The NCPO told the government to seek new technology and science to tackle the water pollution.