Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Saturday defended the government’s plan to legalise casinos located in entertainment complexes, saying that the policy will not allow gambling dens to open freely in Thailand.
“Entertainment complexes are not free gambling dens,” she said. “They are man-made tourist attractions that have casinos as a small part.”
Paetongtarn was responding to reports that protesters were opposing the plan to build entertainment complexes while her father, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, was speaking in Si Sa Ket province on Friday.
The patriarch of the ruling Pheu Thai Party was campaigning for the party’s candidate in the upcoming election for chairman of the Si Sa Ket Provincial Administrative Organisation (PAO).
The protesters reportedly said that the project would open doors for illegal gambling dens to open freely in Thailand, promoting gambling addiction and jeopardising public morality.
“Entertainment complexes will serve as a key attraction for tourists, generating new sources of income for Thailand. This is crucial because our current income is not enough to drive GDP growth,” Paetongtarn told reporters as she landed at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Saturday.
The PM was back from her mission at the 55th World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week.