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Commerce Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong has rejected claims that the Pheu Thai-led government's rice mortgage scheme will cost the country hundreds of billions of baht.
Mr Kittirat said yesterday he was ready to explain the details of the mortgage scheme to its opponents, including former deputy prime minister MR Pridiyathorn Devakula and renowned economist Ammar Siamwalla from the Thailand Development Research Institute.
"I would like to meet MR Pridiyathorn and Dr Ammar and other economists who disagree with the rice mortgage programme so I can hear their views and also help them understand [how the policy will work]," he said.
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Red-shirt supporters have expressed dismay over ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's call for them to set aside their anger and frustration over social and legal injustices for the sake of national reconciliation.
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Discussion 12 : 27/09/2011 at 09:56 PM12
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#8 I agree with you that Thai farmers don't deserve to be richer. At the same time they don't deserve to have their paddyfields flooded just to keep their fellow Bangkokians feet dry. Agree ?????
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Discussion 11 : 27/09/2011 at 04:55 PM11
Out of the top 10 rice producers Thailand has the lowest yield per hectare. Vietnam is almost double. If they want to have farmers make more money and increase exports they need to put the money into productivity improvements. But that won't happen.
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Discussion 10 : 27/09/2011 at 12:12 PM10
lazar, #6: Only if they can borrow enough money to buy a university degree.
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Discussion 9 : 27/09/2011 at 11:33 AM9
AV spend billions on farmers is OK. YS spend billions on farmers is NOT OK.
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Discussion 8 : 27/09/2011 at 11:15 AM8
Let me explain something to the Peua Thai sycophants... Thai farmers don't DESERVE to be richer. No-one does. People get richer by working better, smarter or harder. Thai rice farmers work for a relatively short period of time per year. They use too many people to produce too little money. The farming industry has been massively subsidised (bribed for votes) for 30+ years. Nothing has improved because it's like putting a plaster over a severed artery. Too many people on Bangkok Post have an idealised, outdated notion that poor people are worthy and honourable and therefore rich people are evil oppressors. It's pointless left wing dogma. Just look how badly it fared in Cambodia, Vietnam and China - tens of millions died in wars and stupid policies.
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Discussion 7 : 27/09/2011 at 11:03 AM7
why not explain it to the public? It has failed once before, why wouldn't it fail again? especially when purchasing rice above market price, that is above market price directly from the farmer, they haven't even factor in the cost of processing the rice and middle men profits. People will start smuggling rice from neighboring countries into thailand to sell. This is just how business works, nobody wants to overpay for anything.
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Discussion 6 : 27/09/2011 at 10:35 AM6
When all the farmers go bust, will they be offered alternative employment in parliament?
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Discussion 5 : 27/09/2011 at 10:29 AM5
It's easy to think out a used plan isn't it, from an airconditioned office in Bangkok. Your average farmer doesn't exactly have the (transport) means to shop around for the best price, now does he? It's all simple really: if you want to have the poor farmers to have more money, then that's what it is gonna cost: more money.
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Discussion 4 : 27/09/2011 at 09:38 AM4
Whether the system is transparent or not is not the most important issue. However if the market price is about 8500 / 9000 per tonne for the white rice and the government pays the farmer 15000 per tonne there is always someone at the end of the line who has to pay the difference. You may have revolving funds but also this money has to come from somewhere but at the end it is the taxpayer who pays no matter what the minister says.
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Discussion 3 : 27/09/2011 at 09:10 AM3
Playing God with market prices is very foolish .
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