ACT report exposes a decade of corruption involving politicians in Thailand

[webfact]

Picture courtesy of Thai-Asia Bulletin.

 

by Mitch Connor

The Anti-Corruption Organisation of Thailand (ACT) recently published a report detailing graft cases involving politicians over the past decade. The most significant financial loss, amounting to 130 billion baht, was caused by the rice-pledging scheme.

 

The report studied 61 cases involving a total of 68 politicians, analysing media coverage, investigations by the National Anti-Corruption Commission, and rulings by the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions and the Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases from 2012 onwards.

Following the rice-pledging scheme, the next highest financial damage came from the Klong Dan wastewater treatment project, with estimated losses of 24.9 billion baht. In total, eight of the 61 examined graft cases were related to procurement, and together, they cost Thailand 52 billion baht, Bangkok Post reported.

 

Full story: https://thethaiger.com/news/national/ten-years-of-corruption-cases-in-act-documented-in-report

 

-- © Copyright Thaiger 2023-04-18

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

The most versatile and flexible rental investment and holiday home solution in Thailand - click for more information.

[jacko45k]

Just one decade.... ?

This is not news surely!

[dinsdale]

Ah! It's just politicians. Well they are all bent. Pure and simple. As for corruption involving ALL levels of society it's probably in the billions of of baht.....per day.

[smedly]

simple to audit unusual wealth gained since 2013, but of course those in charge exempted themselves from such things - better bring a team equipted with spades if you want to find unusual enrichment - most Thai people won't understand the 8 figure numbers

[steven100]

24 minutes ago, webfact said:

The most significant financial loss, amounting to 130 billion baht, was caused by the rice-pledging scheme.

and where is Yingluck now ......   oh'   that's right ....  she's  holed up in the UK or Dubai or Montenegro or somewhere in one of her luxury dwellings. 

[Denim]

According to the report, several politicians accused of corruption plan to participate in the upcoming election.

 

And to name them would be defamation . No wonder this law stays on the books. Works out well for the lot of them.

[Thingamabob]

Most of the politicians invloved in these scams escaped any form of punishment. Many are standing in the forthcoming election.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

And these cases in the report are just the ones that made it into public view...

 

Needless to say, considering Thailand, they're likely just the tip of a much larger unseen iceberg...

 

I'd imagine, there's not much in the public record of documented corruption cases involving institutions such as the Armed Forces or the RTP (apart from the well-documented police stations construction debacle).

 

And of course, the family behind the No. 1 corruption case in terms of cost, the rice pledging scheme, seems to have one of its members as the current leading candidate to be the next PM....

 

[ikke1959]

Ban them all from the elections

[Golden Triangle]

Thai politicians corrupt !!!! Shock horror, who'd of thunk it.

[phetphet]

44 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

And these cases in the report are just the ones that made it into public view...

 

Needless to say, considering Thailand, they're likely just the tip of a much larger unseen iceberg...

 

I'd imagine, there's not much in the public record of documented corruption cases involving institutions such as the Armed Forces or the RTP (apart from the well-documented police stations construction debacle).

 

And of course, the family behind the No. 1 corruption case in terms of cost, the rice pledging scheme, seems to have one of its members as the current leading candidate to be the next PM....

 

Enough is never enough.

[brucegoniners]

Corrupt politicians? Here's my shocked face ????

[Tarteso]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

involving politicians over the past decade

And current decade? ????????

[chalawaan]

What use is Sherlock Holmes if the case is handed over to Inspector Bribeeasy?

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Following the rice-pledging scheme, the next highest financial damage came from the Klong Dan wastewater treatment project, with estimated losses of 24.9 billion baht. In total, eight of the 61 examined graft cases were related to procurement, and together, they cost Thailand 52 billion baht, Bangkok Post reported.

The last 10 years has seen a huge rise in corruption at all levels, with politicians using their position and wealth to cream off the top.

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Just one decade.... ?

This is not news surely!

Decades would be more accurate, but the last decade has seen a free-for-all.

[chalawaan]

This is why the rest of Thailand can't have nice things.

What a coincidence that the almost forgotten rice pledging scheme be dredged up right now?

What relevance does it have right now?

Could it be because a certain group of individuals with a track record no better, are tanking in the more reliable polls? ????????????

[Srikcir]

3 hours ago, steven100 said:

and where is Yingluck now ......   oh'   that's right ....  she's  holed up in the UK or Dubai or Montenegro or somewhere in one of her luxury dwellings. 

She's in plain site serving as Chairwoman of the Chinese Guangdong-based Port operator Shantou International Container Terminals Ltd. (2019).

[Srikcir]

2 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

And these cases in the report are just the ones that made it into public view...

 

Needless to say, considering Thailand, they're likely just the tip of a much larger unseen iceberg...

 

I'd imagine, there's not much in the public record of documented corruption cases involving institutions such as the Armed Forces or the RTP (apart from the well-documented police stations construction debacle).

 

And of course, the family behind the No. 1 corruption case in terms of cost, the rice pledging scheme, seems to have one of its members as the current leading candidate to be the next PM....

 

Yingluck uses government budgeted rice subsidies to keep rice farmers financially sustainable and that's called corruption.

Whereas:

Prayut uses government budgeted funds to reduce the cost of rice that would allow a profit from market prices and that's not corruption?

Prayut implemented a government budgeted rubber price guarantee scheme to keep farmers financially sustainable and that's not corruption?

Prayut's government paid subsidies (close to 300 billion) through an income insurance scheme to farmers who plant cassava, palm, sugarcane and maize and that's not corruption?

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, Srikcir said:

Yingluck uses government budgeted rice subsidies to keep rice farmers financially sustainable and that's called corruption.

If I recall from past news reports, a lot of money allocated to the rice pledging scheme ended up going into the pockets of various political types and their cronies serving as middlemen... There was a lot of enrichment for the rich occurring there....

 

It wasn't whatever subsidies actually went to low-income farmers that was deemed corruption in that episode. Rather, part of what led to the downfall was a series of falsified/fake government to government supposed rice sales where the rice actually went back to middlemen in Thailand for their enrichment at the public's expense, because the funds involved were coming from the Thai government.

 

"In addition to cases against Yingluck and senior members of her former cabinet, the junta is investigating some 850 cases related to the rice scheme for graft, government spokesman General Sansern Kaewkamnerd told Reuters.

 

Many of the cases involve lower ranking public officials and members of the private sector, he said."

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/thailand-politics-yingluck/thai-junta-fines-former-pm-yingluck-orders-assets-seized-over-failed-rice-scheme-idINKCN12L0CP

 

"Some 302 officials from the Public Warehouse Organisation and Marketing Organisation For Farmers as well as warehouse owners and surveyors have been charged with malfeasance in connection with the Yingluck government’s controversial rice pledging scheme."

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/30311029

 

And a lot of the low-income farmers who were promised payments under the scheme apparently didn't end up getting paid what they were promised.

 

"Yingluck has been charged with dereliction of duty for her role in overseeing a government rice-buying scheme that has run up huge losses and left hundreds of thousands of farmers unpaid."

 

https://www.voanews.com/a/reu-beleaguered-thai-pm-defends-herself-against-rice-charges/1882751.html

 

That said, I wasn't making an argument that Prayut and Co. are any better or any worse than their predecessors when it comes to government corruption.

 

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

November 30, 2017

 

"The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders on August 25 sentenced [former Commerce Minister] Boonsong and 19 others to jail terms of 24 to 48 years for their roles in executing fake government-to-government rice deals during the previous Yingluck government’s tenure, causing Bt16.9-billion in financial damage to the state. Weerawut, the third former official convicted, fled the country before the court ruling."

 

"THE NATIONAL Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) yesterday forwarded a case to the Attorney-General regarding former Commerce Ministery secretary Weerawut Wajanaphukka for new indictments and a trial after it decided earlier this month that he should be charged for having accumulated “unusual wealth”.

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/30332914

 

[thaibeachlovers]

3 hours ago, Golden Triangle said:

Thai politicians corrupt !!!! Shock horror, who'd of thunk it.

You beat me to it. I'd be surprised if the report said they were not corrupt.

[jacko45k]

15 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Decades would be more accurate, but the last decade has seen a free-for-all.

Yes, the reign of the unelected PM has a lot to answer for.... all been on slack leads. 

[hotchilli]

40 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

Yes, the reign of the unelected PM has a lot to answer for.... all been on slack leads. 

More like unleashed.

 

[jacko45k]

2 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

More like unleashed.

 

Yes, likely more accurate. 

[mikebell]

21 hours ago, webfact said:

61 cases involving a total of 68 politicians,

How many are still 'working'?  How many were sentenced?  How many millions of ill-gotten gains were re-couped? 

It's not just the traffic cops who do a rubbish job; seemingly there's another branch who don't do any work either.

[soalbundy]

Come election time they will all be singing 'I vow to thee my country...........'

[newnative]

I'm wondering why they even bothered as there's so little in the way of consequences. 

[zzaa09]

On 4/17/2023 at 8:28 PM, jacko45k said:

Just one decade.... ?

This is not news surely!

Actually, if they were honest with themselves, might understand that such practices go back numerous decades. 

Tradition.

[jacko45k]

18 hours ago, zzaa09 said:

Actually, if they were honest with themselves, might understand that such practices go back numerous decades. 

Tradition.

Endemic is my favourite word for it.