The Supreme Administrative Court of Thailand ruled that the exiled former Prime Minister Yingluck must compensate for the losses caused by the rice price subsidy program, with the compensation amounting to 10.03 billion baht (1.308 billion ringgit).
Yingluck served as Thailand's Prime Minister from 2011 to 2014. Her government at the time implemented the rice price subsidy program, purchasing rice from farmers at prices above the market rate with the aim of raising rice prices and protecting farmers from exploitation by middlemen.
According to reports from the Bangkok Post and other foreign media, on the 22nd, Thailand's Supreme Administrative Court released a ruling determining that Yingluck's government's plan resulted in significant financial losses and distorted the rice market. However, she is only liable for compensation for the losses incurred during the rice sales phase, as this involved the exercise of administrative powers.
The ruling stated that the National Anti-Corruption Commission and the National Audit Office of Thailand had previously issued letters warning of possible corruption in rice sales, but Yingluck took no measures to prevent this. This was considered a serious dereliction of duty, leading to officials gaining illicit profits and causing financial losses to the state amounting to over 20 billion baht, with no grounds for exemption.
In earlier lawsuits, the Ministry of Finance demanded that Yingluck compensate 35.7 billion baht (4.654 billion ringgit), but the latest ruling decided that Yingluck only needs to compensate 50% of 20.06 billion baht (2.616 billion ringgit), which is 10.03 billion baht.
During Yingluck's administration, a total of 15,000 metric tons of rice was purchased and stored in two warehouses in Surin province. This policy later led to Yingluck being convicted of negligence, but she fled abroad before the court ruling. Yingluck has consistently denied any wrongdoing, and her legal team stated that the rice policy had good intentions and that she was not directly accountable for operational mistakes.