Pattaya’s top business leader called again on the government to provide financial relief to the tourism sector.
Boonanan Pattanasin, president of the Pattaya Business & Tourism Association, said May 9 that the tourism industry was not responsible for either the second or third waves of the coronavirus epidemic in Thailand but has suffered the worst economic damage due to government policies.
The PBTA chief said the government has a responsibility to supply quick and sufficient economic relief to the tourism and hospitality sectors for its continued spurning of foreign tourists.
The government has continued to erect barriers to entry for foreign tourists, Boonanan complained, pointing to the failure to vaccinate the population quickly, control the latest coronavirus outbreak and the reinstatement of 14-day quarantines, even for fully vaccinated travelers.
The third wave has had the most serious impact on businesses as they were still recovering from the last shutdowns, he said. Companies don’t have income but continue to pay some employees and other expenses. Unemployed workers are finding it tough to get new jobs.
As a result, the unemployment rate has soared, as has the number of homeless in Pattaya, Boonanan said.
