|
| Police Come to Rescue of Ban Kru Noi Orphanage |
| UPDATE : 21 February 2010 |
It was shocking when ‘Kru Noi’ Nuannoi Timkul, a longtime advocate of bettering the lives of underprivileged children, revealed she has incurred a little more than ten million baht in debts in order to keep her orphanage ‘Ban Kru Noi’ running. What makes matter worse is that she borrowed from loan sharks who demand hefty interest payments.
When it is clear that her orphanage is buried deep under insurmountable amount of debts, the police was asked to help as the state has recently kicked start a campaign to tackle the problem of informal loans that many Thais are facing.
National Police Spokesman Police Major General Pongsapat Pongcharoen, who specializes in public affairs, stepped in to help Kru Noi and he is hands-on. Pongsapat is an ideal savior to this problem. Not only he can use his position as a police officer to help negotiate with the twenty-three moneylenders but also his insight into social problems in setting a system for Kru Noi’s orphanage in order to make it self- sustainable in the long run.
Amid this economic atmosphere, operation cost of the orphanage exceeds the incoming donation. Inadequate donation combined with Kru Noi’s absence of an accounting skill eventually led to her making ill-advised choices and resorted to borrowing from informal moneylenders until the situation became a big mess.
However, it should please all to hear that negotiations with the 23 lenders by Pongsapat is a success. The original amount of combined debt worth almost 11 million baht has been reduced by almost half to just 5.7 million baht. Many creditors agreed to lower or even forgive some debts.
The light at the end of the tunnel was revealed when a Kasikornbank account was opened at Ratburana branch specifically to receive donation, which will be used to repay debts Kru Noi incurred for the orphanage. The bank account number is 745-2-59999-0. The account is one way charitable people can help Kru Noi keep her orphanage and the other way is to give donation directly at Ban Kru Noi in Ratburana district of Bangkok.
However, to ensure transparency, the account was opened under strict conditions. Not a satang can be withdrawn from it until the balance is equal to the amount of the remaining debt. When it does the account will be closed and the money will go immediately to the moneylenders. Reportedly, donation money keeps coming into the account, showing that so many people are willing to help.
For long term solution, ‘Kru Yhui’ Wanlop Tangkananurak, the Secretary General of the Foundation for a Better Life for Children and veteran children advocate, along with a number of NGO experts will become board members to oversee Ban Kru Noi to make sure that proper management is in place and the orphanage will become self-sustainable.
Kru Noi has been given a warning for her first strike. Police Major General Pongsapat said she cannot allow this to happen again as the public will definitely not forgive her for the second time around.
The bank account is waiting to be filled with donation so the orphanage can continue to provide help to better the lives of underprivileged children. For the police to step in, they deserved a praise for showing that there is more to their duty besides enforcing the law and arresting criminals.
Taken from ‘Chok Mai Mee Moom’ by Wong Tawan, Kao Sod Newspaper Page 2, February 19, 2010
Rewritten by Pornchai Sereemongkonpol
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
