Magnanimous governor accepts blame for Bangkok’s floods

It makes a refreshing change to hear a politician or a man in authority accept the blame for something which isn’t necessarily his fault. The rest of the world should sit up, listen, and take a leaf out of Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt’s book!

The magnanimous 56 year old city chief absolved previous Bangkok governors and accepted the blame for Wednesday night’s flash-floods which saw much of the capital under about 30 centimetres of water. About 160 millimetres of rain is said to have fallen on Bangkok between Wednesday and Thursday.

“Since I’m the governor now, this problem is my responsibility. If you want to blame someone, then blame me. I will give my 100% to solve this problem both in the short- and long-term.”

The Bangkok governor did have some support. Television host Lakkana Panwichai, better known as Kham Phaka, defended Chadchart on Facebook. She said…

“The floods stemmed from faulty city planning and the problem could not be solved overnight. The governor deserves praise for inspecting issues that affect the city.”

The Drainage and Sewerage Department announced yesterday that a number of the capital’s main roads were under 20 to 30 centimetres of water, including Ratchadaphisek, Pracha Songkhro, Prachasuk, Lat Phrao, Phatthanakan, Navamin, and several sois off Sukhumvit Road.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration deployed water pumps in the main flooded areas across the city and used boats to push water from canals into the sea to accelerate draining. Chandchart said the flood water should be cleared today if the weather is kind to the city

The governor pleaded with residents to refrain from throwing waste into rivers or canals, adding refuse collectors will remove all rubbish when the roads are clear.

Meanwhile, Chadchart announced he will coordinate with the Corrections Department to hire more prisoners to clean up blocked sewers in the city after they successfully cleared about 530 kilometres of sewers since they were employed in a sewer program in June.

Residents in several districts acknowledged floods in their areas cleared faster than before the sewers were cleaned.

SOURCE: Nation