Prime Minister plans to ask various sectors to propose a plan for the country to move forward and to improve citizens’ lives in the coming weeks.

Prayut Chan-o-cha on 12 June 2020 (Source: File/Thaigov.go.th)

On 17 June, Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha announced on nationwide TV a plan called “Thais Together Build Thailand,” with three new approaches for the post-Covid-19 era.

The three new approaches include inclusivity of the policy-making process, assessments from stakeholders and more proactive government operations.

Gen Prayut said he had noticed the willingness of Thais at all levels to work together as a whole when the country was dealing with the threat from Covid-19, so he thought that the government and the people should work together as if there was a crisis every day in order to move faster and further.

“In the post-Covid era, it’s time for us to look beyond the daily distractions of politics, and for us, as your elected officials, to accelerate our work to better the lives of people,” Gen Prayut said.

The first initiative introduced was cooperation of all sectors and all levels of the society. Prayut said the government will make sure its process of making plans and policies will become more inclusive of all the people affected by it. The public will no longer learn about the government’s process from the news but will, instead, become an integral part of the process.

“There are so many people who are willing to do more for their country, but they just need the opportunity to contribute. I will do my best to give them that opportunity,” Gen Prayut said.

Gen Prayut plans to ask various sectors to propose a plan for the country to move forward and to improve citizens’ lives in the coming weeks.

The second initiative introduced was giving the people a greater role in evaluating the government’s performance. Gen Prayut and government officials plan to listen more to public opinions on government programmes. There will be changes made to government programmes if they are not actually benefiting the people as initially intended.

The third initiative introduced was for government operations to be more proactive. Gen Prayut plans to move forward with even greater proactive purposes by designating certain urgent policies for cabinet consideration and monitoring government projects closely. Government agencies will also be more proactively coordinated.

“I would like to invite every citizen to resolve to do their part and be ready to contribute to that plan,” Gen Prayut said.

Gen Prayut said Thai people must work together. While he understands that there might be dissenting opinions, he promised to reach out to them and listen to what they have to say.

On June 18, ThaiRath reported that when Gen Prayut was asked how he plans to include the public in developing the country under his “new normal” approaches, he responded with “I’m thinking about it.”