Somchai resigns as GLO chairman

Somchai resigns as GLO chairman

Somchai Sujjapongse has resigned as chairman of the Government Lottery Office's board after nine months.

Mr Somchai, also the Customs Department director-general, said he made the decision to pave the way for another person to solve the long-standing problem of overpriced lottery tickets, one of the priorities the military junta had pledged to address after the coup last year.

Over the past nine months, Mr Somchai said he had done his best to bring down prices but lottery tickets continued to be sold well above their face value.

Lottery tickets are sold at 100 baht a pair in general, and up to 120 baht for popular numbers, compared to the face value of 80 baht, largely due to multiple layers of distribution in the retail market, as well as quotas, intended to help underprivileged groups.

"More stringent measures might be needed. Given the scale of the problem, a government official might not have the mandate to deal with it. A man of [higher] calibre might be able to do a better job," he said.

"If possible, I'd like to see a soldier take the position so problem-solving efforts can be integrated."

Mr Somchai stressed his resignation did not mean he had given up on solving the overpricing problem.

In his resignation letter sent today to the permanent secretary of the Finance Ministry, which supervises the GLO, he sought to quit on Monday.

"A man of calibre might be able to do a better job," says Mr Somchai. (GLO file photo)

Mr Somchai also said he had already told Deputy Prime Minister MR Pridiyathorn Devakula, as well as the finance minister and his deputy.

Finance permanent secretary Rungson Sriworasat said on Saturday that by law the Finance Ministry's permanent secretary is the chairman of the GLO board by position but he or she could assign someone in the ministry to do the job.

"Our legal team concludes the existing law does not allow someone outside the ministry at the helm. To do so, the mandate under Section 44 [of the interim charter] is needed to override the law," he said.

The GLO board chaired by Mr Somchai took office on June 28, 2014 by order of the National Council for Peace and Order's chief.

It comprises nine members. Mr Somchai and three more members — Maj Gen Sarawut Karbdecho, Pornsak Srinarong and Chaiyaporn Dhammapeera — were appointed by the NCPO in the same order. The remaining four members came by positions — one each from the Interior Ministry, Comptroller General's Office, Budget Bureau, National Council on Social Welfare of Thailand and the GLO director.

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