The government’s ambitious entertainment complex project will pose an unparalleled threat and will pave the way for the growth of “grey” businesses and social problems in Thailand, outweighing any gains, wrote former finance minister Sommai Phasee in his Facebook post today.
He pointed out that, according to the government’s plan, there will not be just one entertainment complex, on a huge plot of land owned by the State Railways of Thailand, but 4 or 5 of them in the home provinces of some influential politicians.
He said he keeps asking himself whether Thai politicians or bureaucrats are fantasising, or are “high on weed”, adding that, if Thailand wants to have an entertainment complex with a casino, the government should follow the model of Singapore, where there is only one such complex and strict enforcement of restrictions to limit casino entry by Singaporeans who have incomes below a certain level.
Thailand’s casino model is strange, he claims, because the casinos are to be located in 4 or 5 locations, adding that it is a well-known fact that casinos are havens for “grey” businesses and money laundering. He also claimed that the world’s top four accounting firms have declined to audit the accounts of casinos.
He said he wonders how the gaming commission, to be established by the government to oversee casinos, would be capable of regulating the operations of the casinos effectively.
The former finance minister said that Thai people have been familiar with “grey” businesses for a long time and think that they are mostly operated by foreigners.
He cited the case of Phuket which, before the COVID-19 pandemic, was a hub for Chinese “grey” business, such as the “zero coin” tourism catering exclusively to Chinese tourist groups from the moment they step on Thai soil until their departure.
Several large and luxury buildings, designed to cater to “zero coin” tourists, are now abandoned, he said.
“Grey” businesses are not only operated by Chinese organised crime figures. He claims that they are also operated by Russians and European nationals.
He wondered why “grey” businesses flourish in Thailand more than in other countries in this region, conjecturing that the answer is that many Thai people themselves have engaged in “grey” businesses or have cooperated with foreigners in operating “grey” businesses, setting a bad example.
Another reason is the lax law enforcement, said Sommai.
