Thai opposition wants more for flood relief

[November 09, 2011]  BANGKOK (AP) -- Thailand's former prime minister added to the criticism piling up against his successor over the government's flood response, saying Wednesday that she needs to give up her party's pet projects to free up money for flood recovery.

Abhisit Vejjajiva, whose party lost to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's party in July, says some campaign promises the government made must be sacrificed.

Abhisit spoke at a Parliament session where Yingluck submitted a budget bill calling for 2.38 trillion baht ($77.2 billion) in spending, including an initial 120 billion baht ($3.9 billion) for flood recovery and rehabilitation. Abhisit did not say how much he thinks should be spent.

The flooding began in late July and has killed 529 people, mostly by drowning. The water has reached parts of Bangkok, where residents are frustrated by government confusion over how much worse the flooding will get.

Evacuations have been ordered in 12 of the capital's 50 districts and the water is lapping at subway stations in northern neighborhoods, threatening to shut them down. In provinces north of Bangkok that have been inundated for more than a month, floodwaters have finally started to recede.

The government's slow and confusing reaction to the flooding has come in for sharp criticism, with some editorials in the Thai press calling for the prime minister to step down once the emergency is over.

Much of the criticism comes from people who were previously opposed to Yingluck, who is widely seen as a stand-in for her brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Thai society is deeply divided over Thaksin, who was ousted by a military coup in 2006 after being accused of corruption and abuse of power, and is in exile avoiding a jail term for corruption.

On Tuesday, Yingluck was forced to cancel plans to attend this weekend's Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Hawaii, hosted by President Barack Obama. It would have given her an opportunity to gain diplomatic luster, but also could have opened her to criticism of ignoring flooding at home.

The prime minister on Tuesday also announced a recovery plan which includes the creation of a team to coordinate water policy. About a dozen separate agencies now deal with different aspects of water management, with little consultation and no clear lines of authority, hindering both planning and response to crises.

Energy Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said late Monday that Bangkok's flood crisis is likely to drag on for another month, though the water may finally begin to subside in the capital by mid-November.

[Associated Press; By VEE INTARAKRATUG]

Associated Press writers Grant Peck, Pailin Wedel and Todd Pitman contributed to this report.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.