Phitsanulok mayor blames lack of funds for shortage of water in many communities
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin extended his apologies to the residents of Phitsanulok for not being aware of the water shortage in the province sooner.
The province has been suffering from the lack of tap water for more than a decade due to the lack of maintenance of water distribution pipes.
Srettha, who also holds the Finance portfolio, visited the northern province on Saturday to check on flood management and the well-being of local communities.
While the PM’s group was visiting the Phitsanulok Municipality Waterworks Facility in Muang district, they learned from mayor Premrudee Champhunot that the municipal waterworks authority was only allocated a budget of 100 million baht per year.
This amount, she said, was enough to maintain and expand the 80-year-old water distribution network, resulting in some communities in the outer municipal areas having no access to tap water.
After apologising to locals, Srettha said addressing the problem late was better than not doing anything at all, adding that he would hand the job over to Deputy Interior Minister Chada Thaiseth to personally visit the affected areas and come up with both long- and short-term plans.
The PM added that ensuring people have adequate water for daily consumption will be his government’s top priority. The government will also work on ensuring there is enough water for the agricultural and industrial sectors, as well as develop an ecosystem around water sources for sustainable flood prevention, he added.
Kriang Kantinan, who is also deputy interior minister and was accompanying Srettha, also asked the mayor to find out if local communities want to manage their own waterworks systems or if they want to hand the job over to the Provincial Waterworks Authority.
Kriang also urged Phitsanulok MPs to work with local administration organisations to collect people’s opinions, as well as come up with a plan to make tap water potable in the province.
On Saturday, Srettha’s group also visited Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, the province’s most-revered temple that houses the gold-covered Phra Phuttha Chinnarat statue. The PM was presented with an amulet to commemorate the statue’s 666th year and mark the premier’s first visit to the province in 10 years.
