Villagers from Bang Ban brought water pails to the parliament to protest poor water management and repeated flooding. People's Party MPs urged Anutin to fulfill promises of compensation to farmers, criticizing the Royal Irrigation Department for claiming fuel expenses while water pumps remained unused.
On 23 Sep 2026 GMT+7 at the parliament, representatives of flood-affected villagers from Bang Ban, Sena districts, and Hua Wiang subdistrict in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province submitted a letter to People's Party MPs. Fed up with annual repeated flooding, Mr. Pui Saengna, a Bang Ban representative, expressed frustration, stating villagers routinely endure 3–4 months of stagnant floodwaters each year but see no sustainable development or solutions.
"Flooding happens every year, management remains the same, budgets increase but never reach the villagers. They never benefit from the rising budgets," Mr. Pui said.
Mr. Pui also criticized large state projects, noting that after severe floods in lowland areas like Ayutthaya, Suphanburi, Ang Thong, and Chainat, massive budget projects worth hundreds of billions baht are approved, such as the Bang Ban-Bang Sai drainage canal still incomplete, or the Chainat-Pasak-Gulf of Thailand project. Yet villagers remain "hostages" forced to bear the floodwaters instead of economic zones, without proper compensation.
Mr. Pui mentioned Mr. Pradit Sangchay, MP for Ayutthaya’s 5th district from the ruling party, who for nearly a year had assured residents there would be drought and no flooding. Even one day before the flood (20 Sep), the MP live-streamed smiling, saying water levels were low and only minor overflow not affecting residents, causing villagers to trust and fail to prepare until flooding surged from 21–23 Sep.
Today, Mr. Pui brought water pails to hand over via the media to Mr. Pradit, symbolically asking him to use them as head covers to take responsibility for misleading statements that caused serious harm to the people.
Mr. Pui called on Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who last year promised to allocate budget compensation to farmers who sacrificed farmland as water retention areas. Nearly a year later, with flooding imminent again, farmers have yet to receive compensation, some bearing debts exceeding 100,000 baht, suffering total crop loss and bankruptcy.
Moreover, water pumps have been left idle in the area, with full daily fuel claims made, but the equipment was not operational. If the government and relevant agencies continue to ignore this and lack concrete assistance, villagers are prepared to escalate their demands.
Meanwhile, Mr. Tawiwong Totawiwong, former MP of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, demanded urgent government action on six points.
1. Improve the warning system from sudden alerts to accurate forecasts specifying dates, times, and discharge volumes so residents can prepare in time.
2. Seriously install water pumps at critical points along the Noi River basin: Suan Prik Bridge, Si Kuk Bridge, and Wat Ban Paen Bridge, with accountable supervisors ensuring full operation and preventing fuel fraud.
3. Manage water retention areas comprehensively by enabling upstream retention fields in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province to work together, not just shifting the burden solely to Ayutthaya's retention fields.
4. Compensate farmers promptly and fairly who sacrificed land as water retention areas.
5. Establish standard shelters that are safe, clean, and fully equipped to accommodate evacuees forced to leave their homes.
6. Expedite water management commission measures by immediately implementing the six proposals from the water management committee.