Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Friday urged whoever became Bangkok's new governor after the May 22 election to carry on with the mission of developing the capital and resolving its problems.
Gen Prayut said it would not be an easy task to correct the city's major problems as most, if not all changes, required to tackle the problems, need public hearings and approval by Bangkok residents.
"Most importantly, in order to reduce the high density of people living and working in inner Bangkok, the city's business zone needs to expand to the outer areas," Gen Prayut said.
Business areas should not continue to be confined to just the heart of the downtown part of the city, he said.
The fixing of Bangkok's drainage system through the dredging of a number of canals and the removal of illegally built houses should continue no matter who becomes the new governor, Gen Prayut said.
"May I offer moral support to all Bangkok governor candidates," the prime minister said.
"And I hope we will have a good new governor for the city," he added.
