Pattaya will spend majority of its tourism-promotion budget on sporting events as the city tries to comply with an Interior Ministry that already put the kibosh on the Pattaya Countdown and International Music Festival.
Sinchai Wattanasartsathorn, chairman of the city council’s Tourism and Culture Committee, announced June 14 he will appoint a committee to establish rules for what tourism events can and cannot be funded by the city.
The move comes after the Office of the Auditor General earlier criticized Pattaya’s former leaders for wasteful spending and the military-run Interior Ministry issued new dictates stating that local governments can only use public funds on events focused on traditional culture and sports.
The result has been a severe chilling in Pattaya’s vital tourism industry. The Interior Ministry refused to give city hall the money necessary to run the annual Pattaya Music Festival or the New Year’s multi-day concert festival.
Funds remain in place for the Pattaya Marathon and Triathlon, but other festivals and activities that have been held annually for years now are on the chopping block.
