Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has responded to Opposition MPs’ allegations of economic mismanagement, loss opportunities and money by Thailand and poor performance during his administration on the first day of the general debate Wednesday.
The prime minister cited various mega infrastructure projects, implemented between 2015 and 2019, such as the Bang Pa-in-Korat, Bang Yai-Kanchanaburi and Pattaya-Map Ta Put motorways.
On rail transport development, he said that, in 2014, before his administration, there were about 4,000km of rail services covering 47 provinces, most of them single track and only 357km of dual track.
The prime minister said his government plans to increase the rail track to 8,900km within 20 years, covering 62 provinces nation-wide, including 5,640km of dual track.
There are four high-speed train routes in the making, including the Thai-Chinese high-speed train between Bangkok and Nong Khai, covering more 500km, the eastern high-speed train linking Don Mueang, Suvarnabhumi and U-Tapao airports and between Bangkok and Eastern Economic Corridor, the Bangkok-Phitsanuloke route and the Bangkok-Padang Besar southern route.
Regarding the metro system in and around Bangkok, the prime minister said that, before 2014, the overall length of the system was 147.8km, but his government has since opened 11 more routes, covering a distance of 212km and has plans to build three more.
Regarding the government’s credibility in the eyes of the international community, he claimed that Thailand was placed 8th in the world for its public health system and won praise for its performance during the COVID-19 pandemic, with only 0.3% of the population being infected with the disease, compared to 7% or 10% in vaccine-producing countries.
The prime minister also said that Thailand has won international recognition for being one of the best countries in which to work and for tourism, a country in which many pensioners want to stay, for Chiang Mai being the world’s 5th most friendly city, etc.
