Kandee pointed out that the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) received a budget of more than 3.3 billion baht but recovered only 731 million baht for the state. He warned of 'digital termites,' systemic corruption creating abandoned apps with no users, draining tax funds.
On 27 Aug 2026 GMT+7, during a House of Representatives meeting to acknowledge the OAG's performance report for fiscal year 2025, Dr. Kandee Liao Phairoj, a party-list MP from the Democrat Party, debated and proposed three key ways to enhance the efficiency of safeguarding the country's financial interests.
Dr. Kandee first addressed the cost-effectiveness of the OAG's budget, noting it received an allocation of 3.357 billion baht and reported total benefits of 3.631 billion baht. However, a detailed look showed only 731 million baht was actually recovered. Over 80% of the remainder was just estimated opportunity costs. Calculating the Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) yielded only 1.08 times—meaning for every 1 baht spent, only 1.08 baht was returned. By comparison, audit offices abroad achieve returns of 50-100 times. He urged the OAG to raise its performance to meet international standards with measurable indicators.
Next, Dr. Kandee warned about problems in government technology projects, likening the situation to abandoned buildings in the past. Currently, the state is facing 'digital termites' that consume tax budgets through developing platforms and apps, especially in education agencies where projects are duplicated, have high budgets, but very low actual users—for instance, targeting 800,000 users but with only 6,000 active users, or projects spending 20 million baht aiming for 20 million users but ending with only tens of thousands before shutting down. This stems from a lack of thoroughness and systemic corruption concealed within annual maintenance and operations (M&O) budgets.
In closing, Dr. Kandee called on the OAG to adopt a proactive auditing approach and closely monitor the cost-effectiveness of major projects like the Th-Ai Passport, which has faced expert criticism. He emphasized that the OAG must foresee risks before projects start instead of waiting for budget losses and then attempting recovery, as chances of recovery are slim. Preventing damage in advance is crucial to truly protecting the nation's interests.