Pheu Thai Denies Opening Bank Accounts for Flood Donations
The Pheu Thai Party has denied opening bank accounts to accept cash donations for October flood victims, stating it only collected physical goods at its Bangkok headquarters. The Election Commission flagged three publicized accounts as still active, warning potential legal violations that could threaten party dissolution. Pheu Thai insists the cited Bank of Ayudhya account was closed in 2019 and that it merely directed monetary donors to an unrelated Bangkok Bank disaster fund.
The Pheu Thai Party has clarified the controversy over opening donations for flood relief, insisting it did not open bank accounts to receive money but only gathered goods for victims.
On November 14, following reports in online media, the party responded to a case in which the Election Commission (EC) Office stated it had found a political party announcing via the Pheu Thai Party's Facebook page that it was soliciting donations to help people affected by recent disasters. However, the party had not disclosed some of the amounts received to the public and had not informed relevant agencies about the donation drive. The EC said transfers had been made to all three bank accounts the party publicized on Facebook; those accounts were still active and could accept transfers normally, which might violate Section 72 of the Organic Act on Political Parties, the Anti-Corruption Act, the Criminal Code's fraud provisions, and money laundering laws — offenses that could lead to party dissolution.
The reports also noted that human rights lawyer Naraset Nalongthum commented that if a political party were dissolved for opening donations to help flood victims, other parties doing the same should face the same consequences. He posted screenshots showing donation drives by several parties: the Bhumjaithai Party accepting donations for border-area residents via a Kasikornbank account; the Pheu Thai Party accepting donations for flood victims via a Bank of Ayudhya account and setting up a coordination center for essential goods; and the Democrat Party accepting donations for flood victims via a Krungthai Bank account.
The case could create a misunderstanding that the Pheu Thai Party conducted flood relief donations in a manner that violates the Political Parties Act, which the party says is untrue.
Pheu Thai issued the following clarification:
1. During the previous flood disaster relief effort (October 2024), the Pheu Thai Party did not open any account to receive donations for victims and did not accept any money into party accounts or accounts of any party members for that purpose. The Bank of Ayudhya account shown in the reports had been closed since October 16, 2019. Regarding the promotion of monetary donations, the party merely publicized that those wishing to donate money could contribute to Bangkok Bank's "Disaster Recovery Fund," an account opened by Bangkok Bank itself and unrelated to the Pheu Thai Party.
2. During the previous flood relief effort, the Pheu Thai Party established a coordination center to collect essential goods for flood victims — food, beverages, and necessities — at the party headquarters on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road in Bangkok. The party acted only as a gathering point for goods the public brought to donate for victims and distributed those goods to affected areas. This was not the acceptance of donations under the Political Parties Act.
The Pheu Thai Party recognizes that assisting disaster victims is the duty of every person and organization, requiring cooperation from all sides.
