Thepthai confirmed Chuan Leekpai's statement that most Village Health Volunteers (VHVs) engage in vote buying for MPs in the 2026 election. He emphasized that the intent is not to allow VHVs to become tools for politicians and pointed out that proposals to dissolve the VHV organization are distortions of the truth. Tags: [Village Health Volunteers, vote buying, election 2026, political tools, organization dissolution, Thepthai, Chuan Leekpai]
11 Mar 2026 GMT+7Tags: [date, news date] Mr. Thepthai SenpongTags: [Thepthai Senpong, political analyst] Political analyst Mr. Thepthai Senpong posted a video clip analyzing the general election on 8 Feb 2026, titled “Confirming VHVs Really Buy Votes for MPs.” The key point was thatTags: [political analysis, election 2026, vote buying, Village Health Volunteers] Mr. Chuan Leekpai, party-list MP of the Democrat Party, former Prime Minister, and former Parliament SpeakerTags: [Chuan Leekpai, Democrat Party, former Prime Minister, Parliament Speaker] gave an interview to the media about the 2026 MP election, saying that the public might not know which agency politicians use most effectively to commit election fraud — that is the VHVs. He also sent two letters to the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Health, asking for help to supervise and protect VHVs so politicians would not use them as tools for vote buying.Tags: [Chuan Leekpai, election fraud, vote buying, Village Health Volunteers, Ministry of Public Health]
Later, the chairman of the Thai Village Health Volunteers Club, Mr. Amarin Nimnuan, issued a statement expressing concern about communications causing misunderstandings about the role of VHVs nationwide. The statement clarified that VHVs are not involved in vote buying.Tags: [Village Health Volunteers Club, statement, clarification, vote buying denial]
Mr. Thepthai further statedTags: [Thepthai statement] He is one who has monitored the election as a political observer and sees that Mr. Chuan Leekpai’s words confirm the fact that some politicians have used VHVs as tools for vote buying. It may not involve all VHVs, but it can be inferred that most VHVs have been used as tools by politicians in vote buying.Tags: [Thepthai, election observation, vote buying, Village Health Volunteers] He acknowledged the truth that in the last election there were three key organizations or groups playing important roles in vote buying:Tags: [vote buying, election, key groups]
1. Local politicians, including provincial administrative organization chiefs, provincial council members, mayors, municipal councilors, subdistrict administrative organization chiefs, and subdistrict council members. They act as tools for political parties and politicians, using networks built during local elections to buy votes for national politicians.Tags: [local politicians, vote buying, election networks]
2. Village chiefs and headmen, using the mechanisms of government agencies — from provincial governors, deputy governors, provincial clerks, to district chiefs — who play key roles in overseeing village chiefs and headmen. These officials use state power to direct village chiefs and headmen, who have important roles in vote buying.Tags: [village chiefs, government officials, vote buying]
3. VHVs, who are volunteer organizations working closely with the public. Some political parties have used VHVs as mechanisms for vote buying since the 2023 election through to the 2026 election, achieving significant success. VHVs are used because they are close to the people, trusted, and credible, which makes vote buying successful.Tags: [Village Health Volunteers, volunteer organization, vote buying, election success]
Mr. Thepthai added that what Mr. Chuan mentioned does not mean every VHV but some groups or parts, which constitute the majority. This is no different from politicians, who include both good and bad individuals, those who buy votes and those who do not. Currently, politicians who buy votes outnumber those who do not. Therefore, speaking about VHVs’ involvement in vote buying is true.Tags: [Thepthai, Chuan Leekpai, vote buying, politicians, VHVs]
Regarding the distortion that there is a proposal to dissolve the VHV organization, this is untrue, especially concerning Mr. Chuan, who founded the VHV organization during his premiership. During the administration of Mr. Abhisit Vejjajiva as Prime Minister, support was given by introducing a monthly allowance of 600 baht for VHVs for the first time. The original purpose of VHVs is to care for public health, but some politicians and parties have distorted this by using VHVs as tools for vote buying.Tags: [VHV organization, distortion, Chuan Leekpai, Abhisit Vejjajiva, public health, vote buying]
“This is why Mr. Chuan Leekpai, who supports and founded the VHV organization, feels disappointed. He believes VHVs will continue to be supported in their duties, but he does not want them to work against their original purpose by becoming tools for politicians in vote buying.”Tags: [Chuan Leekpai, Village Health Volunteers, disappointment, political tools, vote buying]