"Kardee" has submitted a request to the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) to urgently audit the 1.6 billion baht Th-AI Passport project to ensure it delivers value and transparency. She revealed tactics of inflating usage figures that do not truly reflect skill enhancement, and stressed that failure to comply with the Terms of Reference (TOR) could render the contract void.
At 10:00 a.m. on 21 Sep 2026 GMT+7, Ms. Kardee Liaopiroj, a party-list MP and deputy leader of the Democrat Party, submitted a letter to the Auditor General at the OAG office, requesting a legal audit of the facts and transparency of the digital and AI skill enhancement project for Thais, known as TH-AI Passport, by the Office of the National Digital Economy and Society Commission under the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society. The project uses over 1,621 million baht of public funds. After submitting the letter, Ms. Kardee said the party fully supports AI skill development for Thais but insists that every baht of budget must be used efficiently, transparently, and genuinely build the country's future. Joint monitoring with technology experts revealed urgent risks requiring the OAG's independent audit before budget disbursement and acceptance. The contract amendments shifted payment to a "Pay per Active User" model (users at the level of creating new things). However, analysis of the TOR and new contract found no clear written criteria for calculation, leaving most key terms to the discretion of the employer.
Ms. Kardee added that the Democrat Party requests the OAG to exercise its authority under Section 45 of the Public Sector Audit Act to issue a warning to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society to delay acceptance and disbursement of the next budget tranche, to prevent irretrievable damage to public funds. She emphasized this submission is not intended to obstruct technological development but fulfills the legislature's role in protecting taxpayers' money and promoting good governance in large state projects, ensuring that Thais receive transparent, valuable, and sustainable AI benefits.
"Our main concern is that the contract allows discretion without strict criteria amid signs of inflated 'usage numbers' in the system. Without an independent audit mechanism, taxpayers' money may be spent without real skill development. Another critical issue is non-compliance with the ethical agreement clauses in the TOR, specifically clause 3.16 requiring bidders to sign an ethical agreement for projects over 1,000 million baht, and clause 3.15 mandating an anti-corruption policy. This ethical agreement is a global mechanism allowing civil society representatives or external observers to monitor the procurement and acceptance process, but this project lacks such procedures. These conditions are mandatory qualifications for bidders. Although the agency claims no independent observers were selected, signing the agreement is a binding commitment by bidders. The absence of this signature raises a key legal question: whether awarding the contract and signing it without meeting TOR qualifications is lawful or if it renders the contract void. This is a significant matter the OAG must resolve," Ms. Kardee emphasized. Ms. Kardee reiterated her concerns.
She presented seven key observations.
Reporters noted that the letter submitted to the OAG outlined seven major concerns:
1. Transparency of the procurement process and indications of specification locking.
2. Non-compliance with the ethical agreement conditions as per the TOR.
3. Cost-effectiveness and performance of the AI system in actual use, which was found to be inferior to commonly available free AI.
4. Definition of "users at the level of creating new things," the basis for disbursing over 1,481 million baht, which involves a significant financial discrepancy.
5. Technical specification changes (Concurrent Users) increased tenfold after contract signing.
6. Risks related to data sovereignty and sending data abroad for processing, violating Data Localization requirements.
7. Lack of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that genuinely measure the enhancement of Thai people's skills.