Facing protests by candidates, UTNP insists it has not been short changing them
The United Thai Nation Party (UTNP) has been reimbursing its candidates’ election campaign expenses, a senior member of the party insisted on Thursday, following a complaint from a group of its candidates accusing it of short changing them.
UTNP deputy leader Witthaya Kaewparadai, who oversees the party’s election campaign in the Northeast, was responding to allegations made by Preecha Rengsomboonsuk, the party’s candidate for Loei province’s Constituency 1.
About 50 candidates of the UTNP running in constituencies in the North and Northeast are demanding that the party reimburse their campaign expenses.
The allegation was made at a press conference at UTNP’s Bangkok head office on Tuesday by about 10 candidates led by Preecha Rengsomboonsuk, the UTNP candidate for Loei’s Constituency 1.
Preecha accused his party of making its candidates pay their own campaign expenses.
UTNP candidate for Sakaew province’s Constituency 2 had all of his campaign banners and billboards removed on Tuesday to protest against the UTNP’s alleged failure to reimburse his campaign expenses.
Witthaya said on Thursday that the party had allocated a budget for candidates’ campaign expenses and divided it equally among them.
The money each candidate receives should cover the cost of signs, banners and hiring vehicles equipped with speakers to drive through constituencies blasting campaign messages, among other campaign expenses, he said.
He said he had asked the protesting election candidates how much they wanted, but they did not reply.
It is impossible for the UTNP to give each constituency candidate 20 million to 30 million baht to cover the cost of their campaigns, Witthaya said.
He said he had told the protesting candidates that the party was not ignoring their campaign expenses.
“I don’t know from what the problem stems from,” Witthaya said.
He then suggested that other political parties might be providing their candidates with more money for campaign expenses than his party does, noting that the protest leader had previously worked with three other political parties.
“Khun Preecha used to work with Pheu Thai, Palang Pracharath and Thai Sang Thai so he might be too optimistic about spending support from our party,” Witthaya said.
The UTNP’s credibility will not be damaged by a protest by its own candidates during the final sprint to the election, Witthaya said. Their complaints demonstrate that the party does not give candidates money to buy votes, he explained.
