Great government giveaways are overheating in the run-up to Election Day, and that means the cabinet has again endorsed spending big to offset electricity costs – pending approval by the Election Commission.
After months of complaints about rising power bills, the caretaker cabinet on Tuesday approved spending THB10.46 billion (US$307 million) for household utility rebates, a plan that the commission already rejected, according to state media.
Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said the plan would provide different amounts of relief depending on the amount of energy consumed.
Nearly all of the taxpayer funds would go to the Metropolitan Electricity the Provincial Electricity authorities, with THB35.70 million earmarked for the Electricity Generating Authority and the Royal Thai Navy.
Under election laws, such spending approved by caretaker governments prior to an election must be approved by the commission.
The government has spent roughly half a trillion baht in recent years on keeping energy costs down through subsidies on everything from diesel and liquefied petroleum gas to compressed natural gas and electricity.
Thailand will vote May 14 in a hotly contested election between parties outdoing each other with populist promises of big public giveaways. Polls show the ruling, military-backed government – which long complained about populist policies before embracing them – faring poorly with voters.
