By Thai Newsroom Reporters
PRIME MINISTER PRAYUT Chan-o-cha could probably be held accountable for an alleged misconduct of a senior government official involving a demanded 15-million-baht payoff if he chose to do nothing about it shortly, said Thai Liberal Party leader Seripisut Temiyavej today (Apr. 7).
Seripisut who concurrently chairs the House Committee on Corruption and Misconduct called on the premier to promptly take action in the face of the scandal in which Seksakol Atthawong, assistant to the Prime Minister’s Office Minister, had allegedly demanded the 15-million-baht kickback from a government official attached to Government House.
The discussion of the bribe money at a restaurant between Seksakol who has been named head of a subcommittee under the committee chaired by Prime Minister Office’s Minister Anucha Nakhasai tasked with the combating against the overpriced sales of government lottery tickets and the female government official was surreptitiously produced in a video clip currently gone viral online.
Prayut would undoubtedly be considered as being quietly supportive to Seksakol’s alleged misconduct if he failed to take action following the attempted kickback scandal, said Seripisut whose panel has today accepted a petition for investigation into the scandal.
Prayut has so far remained non-committal and bluntly concluded it remains to be seen whether Seksakol may have perpetrated such misconduct as alleged.
The assistant to the Prime Minister’s Office Minister who categorically dismissed the allegations saying he was merely being framed up by his political opponents is a former MP of Nakhon Ratchasima known to have planned to seek reelection in a constituency of the northeastern province.
According to the House committee chairman, the attempted 15-million-baht payoff allegedly for use with Seksakol’s electoral campaign evidently amounted far beyond a legal limit at 1.5 million baht in campaign finance for each electoral contestant.
Accompanied by assistant police chief Pol. Lt. Gen. Surachate Hakparn, the assistant to the Prime Minister’s Office Minister recently arrested a businessman running Mungkorn Fa Lottery Co. which was found out to be an illegal lottery tickets distributor and raided a firm dealing in the distribution of lottery tickets as part of the subcommittee’s tasks against the overpriced lottery sales.
CAPTIONS:
Top: Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha pinning a new ID card on Seksakol Atthawong last year. Photo: Naewna
Home Page: Seksakol Atthawong. Photo: Naewna
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