Government Spokesman Defends Prime Minister: Parliamentary Questions Not Avoided Due to Scheduling Conflicts
Government officials defended the Prime Minister's absence from parliamentary questioning, attributing it to scheduling conflicts and the late notification of question topics rather than deliberate avoidance.
On April 30, 2025, Ms. Ratchada Thanadirek, spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office, clarified the Prime Minister's absence from live parliamentary questioning, explaining that the Parliament only notifies the cabinet of question topics on Thursday morning. Since the Prime Minister and ministers don't know the topics in advance, they sometimes cannot attend due to pre-scheduled commitments, or questions may be delegated to the responsible minister to answer on their behalf.
Regarding the Land Bridge project question, it was assigned to Deputy Prime Minister Pipat Ratchakitprakarn, Minister of Transport, to answer instead because the Transport Ministry is the primary responsible agency. However, the Deputy Prime Minister was occupied with the first 2025 Rail Transport Committee meeting, an important agenda following the Rail Transport Act's official implementation on March 27. The meeting was scheduled a week in advance and produced significant resolutions, including measures to reduce public expenses and protect passenger rights, as well as expediting regulations for an integrated ticket system. Therefore, Deputy Transport Minister Siripong Angksakulkiart was assigned to provide clarification to Parliament on behalf.
Ms. Ratchada further noted that the Prime Minister's schedule included meetings with the Police Commission, economic team discussions, and a press conference on suppressing transnational criminal networks, corruption, citizenship fraud, and illegal gambling operations. She emphasized that assigning responsible ministers to answer questions is not avoidance but rather ensures comprehensive information, as the responsible minister can provide complete and detailed data.
