Lawmaker Pushes Special Committee to Overhaul Civil Service
A Thai lawmaker proposed a special parliamentary committee to restructure the civil service amid concerns that 1.435 trillion baht in annual personnel costs leaves almost no budget for development programs.
On July 9, during a parliamentary session reviewing civil service development reports for 2567 and 2568, Pol. Col. Thawee Sodsong proposed forming a special parliamentary committee to examine restructuring, merging, decentralizing authority, and applying AI technology across state agencies. He noted that while the Public Sector Development Committee's mandate includes advising the cabinet on structure and budgets, its work should be more ambitious.
Thawee unveiled alarming budget figures, revealing that current personnel expenditure totals 1.435 trillion baht, encompassing 3 million active civil servants and 2.4 million retirees. Combined with multi-year budget commitments expected in 2570, this could reach 1.7 trillion baht—leaving almost nothing for development after tax revenues are absorbed by payroll.
He also criticized "integrated budgeting," a system used for over a decade that exemplifies flawed centralized governance. Programs targeting inequality and household debt have worsened because they ignore community-centered approaches. Thawee further warned that budget allocation increasingly favors bureaucrats and capital groups, with only 3-4 major firms controlling multi-year contracts worth roughly 400 billion baht each.
Thawee stressed that civil servant integrity is paramount, expressing alarm at corruption cases in local administration and alleged vote-buying in provincial elections. He vowed to use these issues as grounds for establishing the special committee.
