Thepprasit Market retailer
Lek Cherdchai says he’s like to see serious action taken to reduce
production costs, support employment and promote local products.
Jetsada Homklin
With the military now firmly in charge of politics, Pattaya-area
business owners want the junta to use their new authority to impose
price controls on everything from food to gasoline.
The lifting of the curfew in Pattaya has meant that people from other
parts of the country are streaming into the area, especially on
weekends. This has caused an increase in traffic, but perhaps more
importantly, also seems to be having an impact on local prices.
Restaurant operator Khaopun Wongkhamlao said that, since the May 22
coup, people are being even more careful about what they spend, so the
new military government should prioritize reducing the cost of food and
utilities.
A big step, Khaopun said, would be to cut or control the price of raw
materials used by restaurants to prepare meals. He surmised that, since
traffic has increased so much, people working full time jobs have no
time to cook for themselves. If they eat out every meal, they could
spend 150 baht a day on food while making only the 300 baht daily
minimum wage.
Thepprasit Market retailer Lek Cherdchai wants to see serious action
taken to reduce production costs, support employment and promote local
products. Lek suggested that it might even be good for the military to
set up a government market within the city that would offer reduced
rental rates, making it easier and more profitable for the vendors to
sell their local goods.
Motorbike taxi driver Theeradet Phongphetphan says he wants to see
government controls on the price of gasoline and petroleum products. He
said current prices cause him to charge higher fares, making things
worse economically for his customers.
