BANGKOK, Thailand – Kavita Wongyakasem runs a small business in Bangkok, owns a two-storey house on the outskirts of the Thai capital, drives a pickup truck, and sends her two daughters to good schools.
The problem has become a key issue in a May 14 general election and all major parties have promised wage increases or debt moratoriums, along with guarantee-free loans and handouts. Excluding overlapping policies, poll promises by nine major parties analyzed in February could amount to 3.14 trillion baht , only slightly less than the annual budget of 3.18 trillion baht, the Thailand Development Research Institute think tank estimated.
Although a sticky issue for years, the problem has become worse since the COVID-19 pandemic that nearly doubled the number of bad debt accounts to 10 million, according to the central bank.