The rice mortgage scheme, which the Pheu Thai-led government plans to revive, is rife with opportunities for corruption, says the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).

Prime Minister Yingluck insisted during her recent policy speech to parliament that the government would revive the rice mortgage scheme as the Pheu Thai Party had promised during the election campaign.

The NACC's Office of Corruption Prevention Measures found in recent research that there were loopholes in prior rice mortgage schemes that allowed corruption to take place, said Medhi Krongkaew, a NACC member.
The NACC had received complaints about corruption linked to previous rice mortgage schemes.

Mr Medhi said the research team started studying the issue in October 2010.

The commission had recommended that both the Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat governments scrap the scheme, but they failed to do so.

But when Abhisit Vejjajiva became prime minister, his government scrapped the programme, replacing it with a rice price insurance scheme.

Corruption was reduced as a result, he said.

By the end of this month, the NACC will publish an article based on its research and outlining the advantages and disadvantages of both the rice mortgage scheme and the rice price insurance scheme.

Mr Medhi said researchers found that the government lost 19 billion baht in the rice mortgage scheme between 2005 and 2006.

During that period it bought 5.2 million tonnes of rice for nearly 52 million baht, far above the market price, and then sold it at a loss in auctions.

Rice stocks also were kept too long, resulting in a deterioration in rice quality.

Based on its conclusions, the NACC recommended the government cancel the rice mortgage scheme and keep the Democrats' rice insurance scheme, with some improvements. The report will be sent to the government

Source: Bangkok Post