MP questions watchdogs' big budgets

3 agencies receive B10bn in funding

PUBLISHED : 2 Jul 2026 at 05:46

A People's Party (PP) MP has questioned the performance of three constitutional independent agencies, saying they receive almost 10 billion baht in annual funding but have failed to execute their tasks efficiently.

The MP also warned their current structure risks reinforcing the "blue regime" system in politics.

Speaking during the third day of the parliamentary debate on the 2027 fiscal budget bill on Wednesday, Phanida Mongkolsawat, PP MP for Samut Prakan, scrutinised budget requests for the Election Commission (EC), the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) and the State Audit Office (SAO).

The budget bill, proposed by the cabinet, seeks a total expenditure of 3.7 trillion baht.

Ms Phanida said the agencies are collectively seeking nearly 10 billion baht, despite concerns about transparency and accountability.

Examples of this included the EC's unresolved investigation into the alleged collusion in the Senate election.

While the investigation is ongoing, the current Senate has gone on to appoint a majority of members to several independent agencies, including four of seven for the EC, four of nine for the NACC and four of seven for the SAO, she said.

In total, the EC was allocated 608 million baht for operations, yet many projects lacked measurable outcomes.

She also noted that complaints over the February 2026 general election remained largely unresolved. Of 311 complaints received, only 94 had been completed, leaving 217 pending.

This is despite the appointment of 600 election inspectors nationwide and the installation of tools including the "Pineapple Eye" application for reporting election complaints and the "Rabbit Report" system for real-time election results, which was later cancelled.

Ms Phanida argued that while the NACC has an operating budget of one billion baht, most of it is spent on training, instilling an anti-corruption mindset, and holding award ceremonies.

She noted the NACC receives 6,000 cases annually, processes only 3,000, leaving tens of thousands pending.

The agencies have also sought more budgets for various construction projects.