BANGKOK (The Nation/Asia News Network): A recent opinion survey shows that 37.5% of the population is not willing to pay taxes because they are either facing financial difficulties or are uncertain about state welfare benefits.
The survey was conducted from Oct 17 to 31 by the Digital Economy and Society (DES) Ministry on 6,970 people aged 15 and above nationwide.
The survey showed that some people are not willing to pay their taxes because they are unsure about whether they would get welfare benefits from the government.
Meanwhile, 44.6% of the respondents said they would pay taxes if it would improve their quality of life and access to welfare benefits. They also hoped that government welfare would be provided for everybody equally.
The survey showed that most respondents did not have trouble accessing welfare benefits, such as education, healthcare and other subsidies.
However, some complained about insufficient subsidies, inconvenient access and unstable websites.
Respondents also advised the government to take the following steps:
• Set up elderly care centres in communities to support the ageing society
• Organise activities to improve people’s quality of life, such as hiring new graduates as assistant health volunteers and government officials
• Improve digital access to government services
• Boost confidence that public healthcare is equal for everybody
• Grant people of all income levels equal access to free education and other subsidies
• Offer additional welfare to improve people's lives, such as more household subsidies, childcare centres near workplaces and free public transport for people below the age of 25.
