Pheu Thai Admits Giving Money To Reporters As Ny's Gifts

[h90]

UPDATE : 24 December 2009

The opposition Pheu Thai Party has come out to admit that they pooled over 80,000 baht in cash to give to reporters as New Year's gifts at their New Year's party last night. However, they deny suggesting that the reporters use the money at massage parlors.

From Tan-Network:

http://www.tannetwork.tv/tan/ViewData.aspx?DataID=1022760

[bkkjames]

At least they are being transparent about it.

[Chang_paarp]

What is wrong with a few gift vouchers?

[Siripon]

I wonder if Pheua Thai will be giving any snack boxes to the Constitutional Court judges this New Year as the verdict on Thaksin's assets looms?

[dom samui]

Where is the problem??? It's ok , normal

[BangkokJazz]

[ballpoint]

So, did the reporters spend the money at massage parlours? If not massage parlours, then what did the PTP advise them to spend it on? Why wasn't I invited? What is a massage parlour? There's more to this story than meets the eye.

[swifty5x5]

Tea tax

[jerry921]

What did the reporters massage and when did they massage it?

(apologies if this joke doesn't internationalize well, maybe its a US thing)

[webfact]

Karun apologises over cash gift to journalist

By NAYA JAIKAWANG

THE NATION

Published on December 25, 2009

Opposition Pheu Thai Party's MP Karun Hosakul apologised yesterday for giving money as a New Year's gift to a journalist, saying it was an improper act.

"I apologise as I didn't know it was against journalists' ethics. I will not do it again," he said in a press conference yesterday.

At the party's New Year celebration on Wednesday, Karun reportedly asked for cash donations from Pheu Thai MPs to give as a seasonal present to the reporters.

He collected Bt 80,000 and gave it all to a television journalist who regularly covered the opposition party's affairs.

Karun said he had no bad intentions but got the idea after a journalist asked whether he would have any gifts for reporters who worked hard in the year covering Pheu Thai's activities.

So he asked for donations from MPs and executives of the party such as Yaowapa Wongsawat, wife of former Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, MPs Suchart Lainamngern and Anudit Nakorntap, and gave it all to a TV journalist who is close to him.

However Karun later contradicted himself, saying he had not yet given the money to any reporters; it was still with him. Asked at the press conference whether the money had been handed out, Karun said he had not given it to anybody.

A group of journalists who broke the news did not see money handed out at Wednesday's party, but got a tip from Nan province MP Dr Chonlanan Srikaew who told them Karun was asking for donations as gifts to journalists.

Several MPs confirmed they gave Karun a few thousand baht each, totalling tens of thousands of baht.

Nobody was able to identify the television reporter who took the money from Karun.

Prasong Lertrattanavisut, president of the Thai Journalist Association, said its ethics committee would ask media for an inquiry to identify the reporter.

"Taking any form of interest from any person is against Article 22 of the journalism code of conduct," he said."Such [offering of money] could also be deemed as defamation |to the profession of journalists in |accordance with Article 20," Prasong said.

Politicians who gave such money to journalists insulted the profession, he added.

The association urged journalists to report conflict situations with accuracy for the benefit of society and with respect to their professionalism.

-- The Nation 2009/12/25

[newsfooter][/newsfooter]

[Siripon]

Karun's behaviour over the last 2 years really has been a liability for Pheua Thai, but beggars can't be choosers.

Arisman's outrageous threat to burn down Apichart's house deserves criminal prosecution.

[Asa]

At my company, no staff will accept such gift from client. It's a bribery. If they had accepted it without knowing, they made report to supervisor and return the money. That way, our staff will be free from owing a favor to client. Journalists have been criticising politicians for taking bribes, in this specific case and if the journalists group accepted the money they are no good.

[TAWP]

The journalist even implied to want the bribe if I read it correctly, and might have initiated the thought. No doubt as he felt that they should return his 'favor' of covering their activities all throughout the year...oh, wait, even the article says so.

[Artisi]

What does it matter, most of the Thai reporters couldn't even report on the sun coming up each morning correct - so why worry about their political reporting.

[notepad]

TAN Network

UPDATE : 25 December 2009

Pheu Thai Denies Massage Parlor Treat for Reporters

The Pheu Thai Party spokesman has denied that he had planned to treat reporters to a massage parlor visit, claiming that his intention was only to take them on a trip to either the sea or a waterfall as a New Year's gift.

Pheu Thai spokesman Prompong Nopparit has claimed that a statement by Pheu Thai Bangkok MP Karun Hosakul about the collection of cash to arrange a New Year's celebration for reporters was misinterpreted.

The 80,000 baht in cash was rumored to have been given to reporters to spend on a massage parlor visit as a New Year's present from the opposition party's MPs.

Prompong today claimed that his statement of taking reporters for “a bath” meant taking them to either the sea or a waterwall.

However, it is widely understood in Thailand that “taking a bath” can idiomatically mean going to a massage parlor.

Still, Prompong denied that Pheu Thai would pay for reporters to go to a massage parlor as speculated.

The Pheu Thai spokesman went on to say that he has no intention of blaming the reporters for making headlines of the issue but claimed it was a misinterpretation by the media.

[Siripon]

Once again Pheua Thai are trying to insult the public's intelligence. Perhaps Prompong is worried female red shirt supporters won't approve of massage parlour trips but as his own wife accused him of assault his reputation is low.

[animatic]

Soapys for all reporters covering Peua Thai?

About the only thing clean will be their massaged bits,

their hands will remain dirty as hel_l.

And still this doesn't shock, because it is so normal in LOS

for the poor girls of Issan to keep the power brokers happy one way or another,

and then have their poor parents think they do it ALL for the good of the people up country.

99 and 44/100% DIRTY and that's AFTER the bath house visit.

Edited December 27, 2009 by animatic