The hand-picked candidate to succeed former mayor Sonthaya Kunplome defended his predecessor’s record on Pattaya’s never-ending roadwork, saying it was short-term pain for long-term gain.
Former deputy mayor and MP Poramet Ngampichet said April 5 that he plans to continue all the ongoing drainage work that has turned Pattaya’s streets and sidewalks into a disaster zone.
Ending or completing the incessant roadwork consistently ranks among the Top 3 priorities among the public and Poramet’s three rivals have zeroed in on the public discontent in hopes of unseating the long established Rao Rak Pattaya group from its seat of power in Pattaya.
Poramet, saddled with the records of Sonthaya and his brother Itthiphol Kunplome, mayor from 2008-2015, has little choice but to defend and continue the work, even though he acknowledges it has damaged the city’s image among Thai and foreign tourists.
If elected, he said the work would continue, but pledged he would prioritize its completion.
Poramet refused to blame the former mayor, instead fingering the Provincial Electricity Authority, which has been burying power and electrical wires across the city, a job not scheduled for completion until as late as 2024.
As for the laying of new drainage pipes, pumps and culverts, Poramet said all the work is necessary to end the chronic flooding that has plagued Pattaya for 50 years.
It’s painful now, but will help the city in the long run as Pattaya becomes the hub of the Eastern Economic Corridor, Poramet said.
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