MP Criticizes Budget Cuts to Local Government

On June 30, 2569, Parliament convened under Speaker Sophon Saarum to consider the fiscal year 2570 budget bill totaling 3.788 trillion baht, presented by the Cabinet. At 10:16 a.m., Deputy Democrat Party leader Chaiyachon Dechadecho criticized the budget, noting ministers' absence from the debate. He dubbed it the "Gamble Bill" because the Prime Minister promises hope in every provincial visit but ultimately cuts local budgets by 22 billion baht, leaving only 4 billion baht—less than 100 million per province.

Chaiyachon challenged the government's sincerity on decentralization, noting local administrations received only 880.541 billion baht instead of the 928 billion baht they should have—just 29 percent of proper allocation. He questioned whether locals were being used merely as campaign tools. Regarding mental health, he expressed concern that Thailand faces rising psychiatric cases among millions, while the Mental Health Department's budget was slashed from 71.54 million to 27 million baht—reducing psychiatrist training from 34 to 22 doctors. Patient care funding dropped from 220 million to 88 million baht despite over 13.4 million Thais experiencing mental health issues annually and 30,000 attempting suicide, with 5,000 deaths.

Chaiyachon sarcastically suggested Cabinet members might themselves have psychiatric problems, joking they forget statements—claiming they discuss coconut sales at 1 baht each or shrimp quantities at 100 per batch. He criticized the government for not promoting its AI platform transparently while citizens spend 500 million baht monthly on foreign ChatGPT subscriptions. He questioned why the government's promised free AI access for 5 million people lacks clear allocation details across students, public, and private sectors.