Interior Minister Denies Political Conditions on Bangkok Flood Aid

Interior Minister Varasit Liangprasit addressed the controversy after Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt stated at an Interior Ministry meeting that the city's emergency fund had only 28 million baht remaining. Speaking at Government House at 12:45 on October 27, 2026, Varasit said he did not want the issue distorted into a political agenda. He outlined the working principle: since the start of the crisis, Bangkok, as a special administrative zone, manages the situation first. If the situation exceeds the city's capacity, it can request help, and the central government will step in. The same applies to compensation — Bangkok handles what it can, and the government takes responsibility for the rest. This is merely a procedural workflow, and he urged against twisting it into a political issue. He noted that some have suggested there are strings attached, such as the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department (DDPM) refusing to transfer compensation funds to Bangkok residents if its own funds are not released, which he views as unjust.

Varasit said the current compensation framework for Bangkok totals 4 billion baht, of which the DDPM has already processed 2.5 billion baht, with another 1 billion baht in the pipeline. He emphasized this is not a conditional process at all — whether for Bangkok residents or anyone else, the government looks after them equally.

Regarding criticism of delayed action, Varasit said a significant portion of applications have been submitted with duplication, requiring careful verification. Some eligible recipients were initially missed and had to be contacted. He stressed this is not a political trade-off, and the 4 billion baht framework does not mean a fixed 2 billion baht split per side. Rather, whatever Bangkok can manage, the government will support the remainder.

Asked why the funds are not simply designated as a central government budget, Varasit said they must first assess how much Bangkok can handle. The city set aside 400 million baht in its central budget, some of which has already been used for flood response. However, budget reallocation methods are available.

On how much compensation remains to be transferred, Varasit said they previously discussed a 500 million baht tranche, of which Bangkok has processed 300 million baht. The rest will be discussed further, but he reiterated it is not a condition — if it were, Bangkok residents would not receive compensation. He noted that over 50% of the work has already been completed.

Pressed on whether Bangkok has a duty to reallocate its budget, Varasit said that is the city's internal management. They did not reserve a large central budget for this because such a crisis has not occurred in this budget cycle. In the next fiscal year, Bangkok may need to review whether its reserves are sufficient.