OPINION

Good and bad

Re: "Host family plan for elderly care", & "Anti-coup safeguard may become law", (BP, April 21).

Your report of "Host family plan for elderly care" pleased me immensely. It's great that the Social Development and Human Security Ministry is planning to help elders neglected by their children lead better lives.

But the incredible report of the same page on "Anti-coup safeguard may become law" is truly jaw-dropping.

In the past 90 years, we have had 20 constitutions.

That's one on average every 4.5 years. If one can abrogate almost with ease the constitution so many times, what is the chance of this proposed law surviving?

To prevent a coup, the only way is for parliament, government and judiciary not to give excuses for the military to come out to keep the peace, prevent corruption or other foul deeds by those in power which challenge human decency.

Re: "Bottoms up: Wine taxes slashed", (Business, Jan 3).

Over four months ago, the government reduced the tax on wine. According to my calculation, this would result in a price reduction of about 10%. Yet no shop has reduced its prices.

I wrote three emails with the complaint that no price reduction was happening to the government's consumer organisation at consumer@ocbp.go.th.

I have received no reply and there has been no change of wine prices in the market. What is the use of this organisation, if such blatant disregard of the law, which was introduced to promote wine drinking among tourists, is allowed!

Of course, this reduction is an absolute farce as the reduction is too minimal to stimulate wine consumption. Moreover, beer, which is far more popular, is not included in this reduction scheme, which means the prices of beer continue to be three to four times more expensive than in neighbouring countries.

But the law is the law and this minimal price reduction should be implemented. Or is the government, for some reason, happy with this show of civil disobedience?

Re: "China's hydro generators wait for the rains to come", (Opinion, March 27).

As Thailand is trying to reduce its dependency on imported natural gas for electricity generation, there have been more reports of the Mekong drying up.

Apart from this article, there are reports in other media, such as the South China Morning Post, on dams in China's Yunnan province. It is facing the worst drought in six decades.

This reminds us of the similar fate that may befall dams built in Laos, which have become a source of cheap electricity for Thailand. If hydropower output has started to decrease in Yunnan because of the drought, then the same story is going to happen in Laos.

This means Thailand will have to increase LNG imports, and that will be more expensive. The government's populist policy to lower electricity tariffs will be much harder to realise.

Remember May 6 last year? The highest power demand ever reported in Thailand occurred on that day. It was 9pm, right as everyone was getting home, turning on their bedroom AC and charging their phones.

This is the second time I am telling the Bangkok Post this important story.

The Post can start by reporting water levels (in metres) along the Ping, Mekong, Chao Phraya and Tapi, instead of merely reporting about rising temperatures and a looming drought.