Deputy Prime Minister Thammanat Prompao declared that those who do not work have no right to criticize and boasted that many people called to praise the organization of the 2025 SEA Games.
On 20 December 2025, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives Thammanat Prompao gave an interview at the Kla Tham Party (KTH) regarding the closing ceremony of the 2025 SEA Games, hosted by Thailand from 9 to 20 December 2025. The event included 50 sports, 3 demonstration sports, and 1 sport with economic value, with 573 gold medals contested in the 50 main sports.
When asked if he felt proud overall, Thammanat said that those who do not work have no right to criticize. For those who work, they do their best with full commitment. Any mistakes must be addressed through criticism, which is a good opportunity to learn lessons. He thanked all the critics and said he would use their feedback to improve, as Deputy Prime Minister overseeing the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), and pledged to do his best.
Thammanat also said that when the competitions take place and each sports association prepares under the allocated budget, the atmosphere shows that visiting neighboring countries are happy and praise the good care they receive. He has been contacted by diplomats from several countries who called to thank him. On the same day, he planned to meet with the president of the International Watersports Federation, who praised his good work but noted that Thais criticize internally. He said they must accept and use such feedback to improve.
The Thai athletes won 233 gold medals, 154 silver, and 108 bronze, becoming the overall gold medal champions for the 14th time. This marked their return to the top spot after 10 years, the last time being at the 28th SEA Games in Singapore in 2015.
They also broke the previous record for the most gold medals at the SEA Games, surpassing Vietnam's 205 gold medals set at the 31st SEA Games held in Vietnam in 2022.