Evaluation of rubber authority governor to finish in 7 days

BANGKOK, Nov 13 (TNA) – The agriculture minister responded to a demand from a rubber growers’ network by ordering the evaluation of the rubber authority governor in seven days. Representatives of a network of natural rubber growers met Gen Chatchai Sarikulya, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, to urge the latter to suspend the governor of the Rubber Authority of Thailand (RAT). They accused the governor of lacking work transparency and failing to solve falling rubber prices. The minister said that he had no authority to suspend the RAT governor but the law allowed the evaluation of the governor’s performance. He asked the RAT board to form a committee to evaluate the performance of the governor and examine RAT’s joint venture with Thai Rubber Joint Venture Co. He expected the probe to finish in seven days. After meeting the minister, RAT governor Titus Suksaard said he learned about the demand from the farmers’ network and that the joint venture was free of irregularities as natural rubber prices were rising in the past two weeks. However, the farmers remained dissatisfied with the increase which was limited by rubber oversupply in the country. RAT did not intervene in rubber prices but let market mechanisms function and supported farmers in doing alternative farming projects in addition to their rubber plantations to increase income, Mr Titus said.