At the same time the military has been criticized for promoting its own interests and those of its leaders . for instance with almost no debate the military’s hand-picked assembly has increased the 2007 defense budget by some 50 percent the junta has purged the public service and has military officers into significant positions in administration A number of scandals have emerged as military leaders have been placed in lucrative positions in various state enterprises and have taken advantage of special privileges and state funds for dubious spending projects