Buriram’s sports racing powerhouse on Tuesday brushed aside allegations that it had agreed to receive Bt300 million in budget approved by the junta-led Cabinet.
Buriram gave a grand reception to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha earlier this month, and the junta premier walked out on to the Buriram International Circuit to the cheers of about 30,000 people.
The scene was followed the next day by a mobile Cabinet meeting at which billions of baht worth of local development project proposals were considered.
According to a petition to Prayut from the Pheu Thai Party’s lawyer, Ruangkrai Leekitwattana, the Cabinet approved Bt100 million budget annually to support the Buriram United company to host the MotoGP World Championship from 2018 to 2020.
Buriram United denied that a single baht from this budget would go into its pockets.
“The MotoGP is held by the government with a company as a sponsor, not organiser,” the company said in a statement. “The approved budget would go to the Sports Authority to purchase the licence fee for the racing programme directly from the licence owner.”
Buriram United said that its support to the race would include providing the racing venue, staff and equipment, worth around Bt20 million per year.
The Nation
