Bangkok (VNA) – Thailand’s Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat has said that the 500-billion THB (about 14 billion USD) digital wallet handout scheme cannot start in May as planned but insisted that the government will proceed with the project.
The digital wallet was a key election campaign policy of the ruling Pheu Thai Party. It is core among a raft of stimulus measures that Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin's Government has promised, including debt suspension for farmers and minimum wage hike.
According to the scheme, the Thai Government will give each 16-year-old person 10,000 THB (about 285 USD) via a mobile application to spend in their local communities. However, there are mixed views about the scheme, especially on how the government can secure money to implement the programme.
The government wants to consider all information carefully, especially the Council of State’s legal opinion on the government’s plan to issue a bill to authorise the borrowing of 500 billion THB to fund the scheme, Julapun said.
Pakorn Nilpraphan, secretary general of the council, earlier confirmed that his office had provided the government with legal observations which, if strictly followed, could avoid problems with the loan bill. Meanwhile, Thailand's National Anti-Corruption Commission recently warned the government about possible illegal acts in its plan to issue a digital wallet./.
