- Thailand’s digital wallet stimulus program has come across a new hurdle.
- The State Council reportedly issued its advice against the plan.
- The finance minister insisted the program has received the council’s approval.
Whether the Thailand government will deposit money in the digital wallets of its citizens as early as May remains a puzzle, as it is unclear if the plan has received approval from the legal adviser.
While Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat claimed on Monday that the legal adviser gave the green light for the government’s stimulus plan, reports have emerged about the State Council giving its “opinion against” the program.
Thai State Council’s Opinion on Stimulus Plan
On January 7, the Nation reported that the Council of State “has given its opinion against” the government’s plan to finance its digital wallet scheme with a 500-billion-baht loan facility, arguing that it would be self-contradictory with what the government claimed to be “an urgent economic situation.
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Following the report, the finance minister clarified to journalists on Monday that the council said it was “within the government’s power” to enact the borrowing bill for the digital wallet scheme. The minister insisted the council had given its approval.
But even before the government could deal with the other challenges the stimulus plan faces, including backlash from opposition parties and economists, the State Council came out to distance itself from the finance minister’s position.
Green Light or No Green Light?
According to a January 9 report by the Nation, secretary-general of the Council of State office, Pakorn Nilprapunt, refuted claims that the legal adviser had approved the legislation allowing the government to borrow money for the digital wallet stimulus plan.
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Acknowledging that it was the government’s choice to enact the legislation as a bill or a decree, the secretary general stated that if the government follows the council’s advice, “it will be safe.”
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