Cambodian rice exports to Thailand rising; Democrat revives allegations

The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) will consider claims of corruption in the government’s rice-pledging scheme made during a recent parliamentary session, a senior official from the agency said. However, it remains unclear when the NACC will conclude its ongoing probe. During screening of the 2014 budget bill last week, Democrat MP Warong Dechgitvigrom revived an allegation against the government first made during the no-confidence debate last December. He said the government suspiciously allowed a private company owned by “Sia Piak” to buy rice from the government’s stockpile for just Bt5,700 per tonne. … Democrat Party spokesman Chavanond Intarakomalyasut yesterday also accused the government of distorting figures related to the rice scheme. … Chavanond also cited a recent Phnom Penh Post report that exports of Cambodian unpolished rice to Thailand were increasing. The opposition politician suspected the Cambodian rice might have been imported by corrupt people in order to profit from the government’s rice-pledging scheme. The English-language daily reported that government figures show that in the first four months of this year, Cambodian milled-rice exports to Thailand reached 14,250 tonnes, while total Cambodian overseas exports amounted to 118,504 tonnes. …

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