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Bangkok Post
Bangkok Post
National

Welfare card changes ‘left genuinely poor people behind’

A 65-year-old woman from Buri Ram breaks down in tears at the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) branch in Lam Plai Mat district after being informed that she had failed to qualify for the state welfare card programme. (Photo: Surachai Piragsa)

People’s Party deputy leader Sirikanya Tansakun has strongly criticised the stricter eligibility criteria for the state welfare card programme, arguing that the tighter screening process has excluded many genuinely poor people from receiving assistance.

She made the comment on Friday as public anger mounted about the system that used data from state agencies — tax, property and vehicle registration, along with banking records — to reduce the number of people eligible for welfare benefits by nearly 30%.

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