UDON THANI: Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Thursday repeated a pledge to raise the salaries of tambon (subdistrict) officials and upgrade their offices to municipal status, but denied he was campaigning for votes.
Gen Prayut made the comments at a seminar for tambon administrative organisation (TAO) officials at Udon Thani Rajabhat University. He said the salary increases would be for TAO chiefs and deputies as well as the presidents, vice-presidents, councillors and secretaries of tambon councils.
The pay rise would be made official when it is published in the Royal Gazette next week, he said.
“This is not a vote campaign. The issue was prepared long ago but just happened to be completed at this moment,” Gen Prayut said.
The prime minister said the government also planned to upgrade TAOs to municipal offices, by drafting a new law that would meet international standards for local administration.
“You will become ‘mayors’. Oh, all of you will be promoted,” he said.
As well, he said, the government was considering improved welfare benefits for TAO chiefs and deputies as well as council leaders and members. The improvements would include medical treatment and child care.
“This is not a vote campaign but normal work. I only have to speed it up to get it accomplished quickly,” said Gen Prayut, who is also the chief strategist of the United Thai Nation (UTN) Party.
The UTN was formed by supporters of Gen Prayut and will propose him as its prime ministerial candidate in the election that must be held by May 7.
“I am thankful for all TAO executives nationwide for effectively solving local problems which are considerable. We have handled problems together including Covid-19. Don’t forget about this,” the prime minister said.
The government recently approved pay raised for some 400,000 TAO staff nationwide, noting that they had not had an increase for a decade. It has denied that the move was political, though parties have known for decades that having tambon leaders on their side during election campaigns is a big key to success.
Weerasak Hadda, chairman of TAO Association of Thailand, noted earlier that the highest salaries paid to those working at TAOs were equivalent to the lowest salaries at municipal offices, so the raise would help close the income gap.
Although the pay rise was not illegal because the House has not formally been dissolved yet, it is still improper in the view of Yutthaporn Isarachai, a political scientist at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University.
“Although it was said to be a government policy, it is inseparably connected to politics,” he said. “It is inappropriate in the lead-up to the elections because it is like a promise to give although there is a legal loophole that allows it.”