The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) plans to issue Bt20-billion worth of bonds this year to finance its monorail project and the Wongwian Ya-Bang Wa Skytrain route, BMA spokesman Thanom Onketpon said yesterday.
Thanom expects the bonds to go on sale on July 20.
Deputy Bangkok Governor Thirachon Manomaipiboon said the BMA had already hired TRIS Rating to assess and issue ratings for the agency.
"We will soon submit our books for the Office of the Attorney-General to review and will ask for an approval on the issuance of bonds from the Interior Ministry and then the Parliament," he said.
Thanom and Thirachon were speaking after they emerged from a meeting of BMA executives.
Meanwhile, Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra yesterday vowed to speed up outstanding projects - while acknowledging he was not too worried about opinion polls showing that he had failed peoples' expectations.
Sukhumbhand will announce his policies for the remaining three years of his term on March 4.
The governor said his first action phase focused on development by alleviating problems during the economic crisis as well continuing the policies of his predecessor - including the Skytrain extension across the Chao Phya River.
He also vowed that he wouldn't rest until he eased the suffering of city residents and brought all projects to completion. However, he warned, the city had monetary constraints and the Bt54 billion budget allocated last year was not enough to cover the outstanding projects, including 15 years of free education as well as monthly allowances for the elderly and the disabled, he said.
Sukhumbhand said some projects, such as the procurement of computers for city-run schools and the installation of security cameras had been delayed because public complaints prompted the BMA to carefully investigate the projects even though expectations are continuing to grow.
Commenting on opinion polls saying that he had achieved little during his time in office, Sukhumbhand acknowledged the results but said he wasn't too worried. Many projects were ahead of schedule but not appreciated because they had not been "sold" to the public.
"I never promised to turn Bangkok into a heaven, other than to complete what I promised during the election campaign. So the work is satisfactory to a certain degree. People can't say I have done nothing at all," he added.
