Abstract
The evaluate of the allowance for the elderly The study of structure of the subsistence allowance for the elderly has the purpose that to evaluate the execution of welfare service for the elderly in the allowance project including the study the problems in the past in qualitative and justice in the society and seeking the guideline to development the desirable pattern of the allowance projects in the future. The method of study is the qualitative by interviewing the relevant groups i.e. the elderly who are allowance recipients and non-recipients, family members of the who are allowance recipients and non-recipients elderly including the committees of allowance recipient selection in the village (committee of the village welfare assistance center) and the responsible persons of the allowance in the provincial public assistance. That is the data collection together with the quantitative data collection from the exemplars of 360 persons in 9 provinces (19 districts) i.e. Chiang Mai, Tak, Nakorn Ratchasima, Nong Bualumpu, Phra Nakorn Sri Ayudhya, Trad, Nakorn Srithamarat, Satun, and Nakorn Pathom, by analyzing the data in description with the statistics. The project of allowance has been paid interested highly as the government is trying to change the pattern of services from the institutional case to the deinstitutional care and make an effort to have the community participate in solving the community’s problems with the concept community-based. The project of allowance has started since the year 1993 under the responsibility of the Department of public assistance with the budget yearly not less than 1,440 Baht for 400,000 persons of the elderly by selecting the poor relatives without relatives and supporters from village 5 persons qualified to receive the allowance. The results of the study are as following.1. the elderly recipients of the allowance can be classified into 3 categories as below1.1 the poor elderly but looked after by descendants, not left lonely, still supported by the family, living at the center of the village. Moreover, the relationship with the village committee They are the group that received the allowance the highest. 1.2 the elderly with the descendants, not so miserable with the middle-class income, mostly are close relatives of the village committee or the head of the village. This group will get the allowance high next 1.3 the poor elderly, miserable without relatives or descendants who left to work elsewhere, mostly living alone by themselves far away from the village center, not participating in the activities of the village, sometimes looked after by others who sympathized them , mostly will not receive any social welfare service. As they are regarded as the “peripheral group” in the community, they will get the allowance the least 2 the concept of management of the allowance to arranging the allowance for the community is community-based by decentralizing so the community can cope with their own problems, but in the practice it is found out that it lacks the effort in encouraging the real participation of the community. Even the elderly as the residents in the community do not participate in deciding, assessing the problems of the community by themselves. Therefore, the village welfare assistance centers with an aim to considering the allocation of allowance has been established in quantity, lacking the methods to develop, strengthen the centers as the operation of most of the centers is regarded as the additional task, lacking the monitoring and assessment of the problems. 3. the thought in its operation is still based on individual affairs as it is arranged to the poor elderly in the residual welfare model only. However, in the real operation it is not decentralized to the target groups thoroughly. The rules in selection of the elderly still lacks the standard, fairness, and the consideration based on the principle of means-test 4. the authority’s mind is still attached to the patronage system. The providing the allowance is unduly considered based personally on intimacy, the intention to expand political power. While the selection process lacks the investigation, monitoring, the consciousness building of welfare among the selection committee. The unfair allocation of social resources will cause the conflict rather than the stability in the community. 5. the problems of disembursement of the allowance, caused from the unfair process of allowance management i.e.the amount and the period of providing the allowance not regularly counted. The reduction of the allowance as the transportation fee in traveling to get the allowance payment, the lack of knowledge in opening the deposit account at the bank in one’s own names, causing them unable to check the account books by themselves and protect themselves. The lack of the assessment and investigation about the fairness and transparency of its operation and the support of information system can be raised as the reasons. 6. the accomplishment of diffusion and expansion of service of the elderly i.e. increasing the number of the allowance recipients has been counted in quantity rather than the quality. Even though, the poor elderly still cannot benefit from this increasing number of allowance recipients 7. the satisfaction the elderly are satisfied with the allowance even the amount of the allowance is not enough for their real living. For the real poor elderly, they feel as they have been more socially guaranteed, credited with dignity. The such amount of allowance can respond to their social value, belief and culture as well. 8. the appropriateness and justice the welfare allowance is provided in form of the diffused payment as the temporary assistance. Meanwhile, it is used in continuation, cannot fix the period, has no guarantee in the expenditure plan. Moreover, most of the target groups who receiving the allowance are not so qualified, thus this project cannot serve well to solving the social injustice. 9.the participation in operation it still lacks the process of seeking and mobilizing the participation to help all levels of its operation, including the promotion of welfare consciousness among the concerned persons, that discouraging and weakening the dedicating spirit for the community 10. the self-reliance and sustainability of the project the pattern of the welfare service cannot sustainably empower and strengthen the elderly for long, as it function as the public assistance only, lacking the reinforcing process or pattern of coordinating with other organizations, that does not result the desirable self-reliance. Moreover, as the welfare service of public assistance is conducted individually based, it will encourage the individualism rather than complement to the collectivism or communality
