The government failed to manage the flood crisis, issuing warnings too late and responding ineffectively, says People’s Party (PP) leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut.
The opposition leader also urged authorities to focus on helping affected people before debating long-term lessons.
“We have had many lessons from the past, and a body of knowledge. The framework for disaster management is already clear, from warnings before an incident to emergency response and recovery,” he said. “What is needed now is efficient command and management.”
He criticised the prime minister’s visit to Sai Mai district, where he personally handed money to residents, saying flood relief should be distributed directly, fairly and equally.
“We don’t want to see senior government figures hand out aid that way,” he said. “We need a society and a system that works, and everyone is benefited equally, not having to rely on senior figures for aid.”
He called for incident command centres at national and local levels to provide regular updates, coordinate resources and give people accurate information about possible further flooding.
The response has been slow from the outset, particularly in Bangkok, where residents received warnings only after flooding had begun. He urged the government not to delay compensation and recovery measures.
Mr Natthaphong also referred to Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt’s performance, saying the capital has strong drainage-management capabilities but lacked local mechanisms closely connected to aid communities, especially when the crisis occurred in all 50 districts, in time.
On water management, he said the government should present a comprehensive picture of the entire system rather than making decisions about individual dams or drainage. He also commented on the Chai Nat-Pasak-Gulf of Thailand flood diversion canal, recently approved by cabinet. He said the opposition will keep up its scrutiny, but the urgent matter now is the flood relief effort.
PP deputy leader Veerayooth Kan- choochat said local authorities in provinces often knew vulnerable residents better and could respond quickly despite delayed warnings.
“It would be better if people could elect their own district office chiefs, similar to the decentralisation seen in the provinces,” he said.
Asked whether the government failed the test in handling the flood crisis, Mr Veerayooth said the government “didn’t even attend the test”.
“The government tried to evade its responsibility by bribing the teachers,” referring to the affected Bangkok residents receiving money from Mr Anutin on Tuesday night.