People’s party MP Parit Wacharasindhu engaged in a heated argument today with Deputy House Speaker Pichet Chuamuangpan, over the budget for parliament’s renovation and the building of a new car park.
Defending himself against an allegation that he was trying to provoke opposition to the proposed spending, Parit told the House, during the second day of debate on the budget bill, that he was simply doing his duty to check parliament’s budget and that he was not only targeting parliament.
He said that allocating money for an unnecessary project is a form of evil in budgeting, as he cited the redecoration of the backdrop behind the House Speaker’s podium which, he claimed, is totally unnecessary and not worth the expenditure.
The outspoken opposition MP insisted that he was questioning parliament’s spending in his capacity as a representative of the people and, if parliament cannot provide clear answers, it would be parliament itself that will tarnish its own reputation, not him by raising the question.
Responding to Parit, Pichet said he has no question about the opposition MP’s bid to check parliament’s expenditure and that the he could summon House committees to testify.
Nonetheless, he voiced his objection to Parit’s approach, by inviting junior parliamentary officials to provide an explanation in a livestream talk show and pressing them for answers.
Regarding the House Speaker’s podium backdrop, Pichet said a budget had been allocated, but was later scrapped.
He also said that the Thai parliament is the second largest parliament complex in the world and it would become the largest with the addition of a new parking lot, adding that there is an acute shortage of parking space in the parliament complex and all the available spaces near parliament building itself are occupied.
Responding to Pichet’s apparent pride in the physical size of the parliament complex, Parit cited a piece of research which states that the larger a parliament complex is, the lower the rating for democracy.
He said he does not think that size is important, noting that the most important and urgent issue is democratic development in Thailand.
