Claims that the government failed to support flood-hit Hat Yai are false, says Deputy Transport Minister Sanphet Bunyamanee.
Authorities have provided assistance covering emergency relief, compensation, recovery and long-term flood prevention for the economic hub of southern Thailand, he said.
Mr Sanphet said Songkhla province had already disbursed 2.1 billion baht in emergency funds to assist victims of last year’s catastrophic floods. The funds cover living expenses, medical care and agricultural rehabilitation.
In Hat Yai alone, 94,734 households received 1.9 billion baht in livelihood assistance, with the compensation programme now complete.
He added that under a cabinet-approved relief package, the government also transferred 9,000 baht to each eligible household affected by the floods.
Across Songkhla, 642,644 households received payments totalling 5.8 billion baht. In Hat Yai district, 248,334 households received 2.2 billion baht.
Beyond direct compensation, Mr Sanphet said the cabinet had approved the acceptance of a 66-million-baht grant from the Asian Development Bank to support post-flood recovery in Songkhla.
The funding will be used to replace damaged medical equipment at Hatyai Hospital, procure equipment for the provincial public health office, repair evacuation centres in Kho Hong municipality, and provide help to vulnerable households.
All projects are scheduled for completion within six months.
Mr Sanphet also dismissed claims surrounding a proposed 99.5-million-baht request for central government funding, saying it represented additional proposals from local business organisations for future rehabilitation and flood prevention, rather than evidence the government had failed to allocate funds previously.
Discussing long-term flood management, Mr Sanphet said the government had approved a 34.3-billion-baht master plan to tackle flooding in the U-Tapao Canal basin, one of most flood-prone areas in the South.
Immediate measures include dredging nine canals, repairing 161 damaged irrigation facilities, improving flood forecasting and early warning systems, and studying new drainage canals to increase water discharge capacity.
His remarks came after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul visited Songkhla on Friday to inspect flood prevention projects, including repairs to the damaged Ror 1 canal.
Mr Anutin said the repairs would be completed before this year’s peak flood season, with emergency funding to be approved before the end of the current fiscal year.
The prime minister also rejected claims that flood-control budgets were allocated on political grounds, following criticism that Hat Yai had been denied funding because it lacks representatives from the coalition-leading Bhumjaithai Party.
“Flood management is the responsibility of the government, not parties,” Mr Anutin said, adding that Songkhla is a strategically important province.
