LEGAL PROBLEMS AND OBSTACLES CONCERNING ON THE PROTECTION OF WELFARE AND PRIVILEGE FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS

Abstract

               The objective of this research was to investigate legal problems and obstacles related to welfare protection and housing benefits of local government officials in accordance with Regulations of the Ministry of Interior on House Rentals of Local Government Officials B.E. 2548 (2005) and the Criteria and Practice for Arranging Local Government Officials to Stay in Accommodation of Local Government Organizations B.E. 2561 (2018) regarding the right to receive rent payments and determine the criteria for protection of rights, standards for housing, and accommodation arrangement. The major findings revealed that Regulations of the Ministry of Interior on House Rentals of Local Government Officials B.E. 2548 (2005) and the Criteria and Practice for Arranging Local Government Officials to Stay in Accommodation of Local Government Organizations B.E. 2561 (2018) stipulated that local government officials must be transferred to a different locality with the first government service commenced in order to be entitled to receive home rent payments. Receiving money for renting a house by means of hire purchase or installment loan to pay the price of a house must be a house located within the locality where the local government organization is located in order to be entitled under such law. In addition, it was found that the accommodation of the local government organization did not set the standard of living and the arrangement of local government officials to stay always gave priority to government officials who were entitled to receive house rent payments. From the aforementioned problems causing problems for the livelihood of the local government officials who have not been treated to solve the problems of housing and are not in accordance with the principles of encouraging government officials to have their own homes, especially government officials who started serving for the first time.

               From the study, the researcher recommended that Regulations of the Ministry of Interior on welfare and accommodation benefits of local government officials should be drafted as a model law or the minimum standard law to enforce with local government officials across the country by defining the form of law on welfare protection and benefits for receiving home rent payments, setting criteria for protection of rights, measures on accommodation, and accommodation arrangement.