FORMER PRIME MINISTER Yingluck Shinawatra is liable for more than Bt280 billion in damages from her government’s controversial rice-pledging scheme, according to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.

Prayut, who chaired yesterday’s |meeting of the national rice policy and management committee, also said it |was a coincidence the court is due to |start deliberating the controversial case involving the former premier’s civil |liability on August 5, just two days before the national referendum on the new charter.

Yingluck is facing charges of negligence of her official duties concerning the rice-pledging scheme’s huge losses, estimated to be more than Bt500 billion.

A government fact-finding committee on civil liability concerning the scheme earlier disclosed thatYingluck would be held responsible for as much as Bt286 billion in financial damages.

The committee also found that former commerce minister Boonsong Teriyapirom was responsible for another Bt20 billion in damages caused by allegedly fake government-to-government rice deals during his tenure.

However, Prayut said the financial damages would probably grow because the government still has a huge stock of unsold rice as a result of the scheme, which will incur further losses as the rice spoils.

According to the fact-finding committee, there is still as much as 13 million tonnes of rice in the government inventory as less than 1 million tonnes have been sold.

The previous Yingluck government bought a record amount of rice from farmers who were offered a price much higher than the world market price resulting in the scheme’s broad popularity.

Prayut said yesterday that Yingluck’s civil liability of about Bt280 billion |would be increased because the figure |was calculated in 2014 and there could |be more losses incurred due to the deteriorating quality of the rice in inventory and the inability to sell the remaining stock.

He said the final verdict on the |scheme rests with the court because the government’s duty is only to present the facts.

Prayut added that the government has been unable to sell most of the rice bought under the scheme because of the unfavourable market conditions and the worsening quality of the rice.

Yingluck and other accused would have a chance to defend themselves in court and can lodge an appeal, he said, but he insisted that those responsible for financial damages would be held accountable.

Meanwhile, Yingluck wrote on Facebook that she would go to court on Friday regarding the charges, adding that she had been facing serious challenges.

However, she said she would remain strong and in good spirits given that there are many well-wishers who have provided her with moral support.

“I will be strong and patient as some issues take time to unwind and understand. Eventually, I believe things will pass and I am ready to answer the questions in court. Thanks for all your support,” Yingluck wrote on Facebook.

THE NATIONAL Anti-Corruption Commission started its investigation into the rice-pledging scheme after the Yingluck government repeatedly failed to heed warnings that the project was plagued with irregularities, the Supreme Court was told yesterday.

Vicha Mahakun, a former member of the NACC, told the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders that the Yingluck administration did not suspend the project after the anti-graft agency twice warned in writing that it was against the project.

There were similar warnings about irregularities in the project from the Office of the Auditor-General and the Finance Ministry’s post-audit committee, he said.

Vicha, who headed an NACC investigation into the rice-pledging scheme, was testifying as a prosecution witness in the fourth hearing in the case against former prime minister Yingluck.

Yingluck was charged with negligence that resulted in estimated damage to the state of over Bt500 billion.

In the afternoon session, Vicha told the court that the NACC did not rely solely on information from the Thailand Development Research Institute in building the case against Yingluck, as had been alleged by her supporters.

He said NACC investigators also gathered information from other sources. “We did not only use the research data from TRDI,” he said, referring to the institute’s finding that the project had incurred massive costs and had involved rampant corruption.

The TDRI had found that the country spent up to Bt985 billion buying 54.4 million tonnes of paddy over two and a half years under the rice-pledging scheme.

It put the corruption figure at an estimated Bt111 billion.

Democrat Party politician Warong Dechgitvigrom, another prosecution witness who testified yesterday, pointed to suspicious acts involving a supposed government-to-government (G-to-G) deal to sell rice to China.

In the court’s morning hearing, he said that the rice sold to China was paid through cashier checks instead of letters of credit, which was the regular practice for international trade, while the rice sold was handed over at warehouses instead of being shipped to the purchasing country.

The Democrat’s testimony backed what a key witness told the court in the previous hearing last month – that most Yingluck administration G-to-G rice deals, which totalled 14 million tonnes, were fake.

Vichai Sriprasert, honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters’ Association, told the court that only one million tonnes of rice was sold on a G-to-G basis to China during the previous government’s tenure.

He said there was no credible evidence of combined G-to-G sales of 14 million tonnes as claimed by the previous government.

During cross-examination by defence lawyers, Warong said that the Democrat Party, when in power, implemented a similar rice-subsidy programme but, unlike the Yingluck government, it did not aim to “buy every grain of rice” or buy rice at prices much higher than the market price.

Warong led a no-confidence debate against Yingluck’s Cabinet over the rice-pledging scheme, and brought the case to the attention of the NACC.

Yingluck was present when the prosecution witnesses testified.

She arrived at the court with her legal team and was greeted by a large group of supporters, who shouted “PM Yingluck, don’t give up” and offered her red roses.

The supporters greeted Warong and other politicians from the rival Democrat Partywith boos. The other Democrats present included deputy party leader Kalaya Sophonpanich, Wirat Kalayasiri and Thaworn Senneam.