Political Networks and Clientelism in Thai State Lottery

Abstract

The high price of lottery has been the chronic problem in Thailand for decades and so many academics have examined and investigated the roots of this problem. In this paper the researcher believes that this problem is based on and conspired by the political networks and clientelism that have been cultivated since the dictatorship regime for six decades. Under the democratic government this problem still exists and is prone to be stronger under the nexus or the complex of the four conspires: the politicians, the State Government Lottery, the Charity foundations, and the major lottery distributors. The researcher comes across that both “the upfront money” and “the lottery quota” is the heart of this problem. Unless the elimination of the upfront money and the improvement of the existing quota system, the high price of lottery still remain.