EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
General blasts banks over drugs
The Nation


Assistant Army chief General Paibul Khumchaya.

Paibul says banks face probes over allegations they are enabling the trade in illegal drugs, calls for national database to monitor users to be set up

BANGKOK: -- ASSISTANT Army chief General Paibul Khumchaya is up in arms over what he considers to be a lack of scruples in the banking sector, after discovering that commercial banks are accepting deposits from imprisoned drug traffickers.

"How is it possible that jailed prisoners have been able to open bank accounts with your banks?"

"Are you happy that you are able to attract deposits from the drug trade?"

These are the sorts of questions Paibul says he asked officials from more than 60 banks suspected of having accounts belonging to drug traffickers.

To reach their deposit targets banks are turning a blind eye to dodgy customers, he said.

The junta has asked the Anti-Money Laundering Commission to monitor bank-account transactions for drug money. Banks that do not allow the commission access to accounts will face fines of Bt5,000 per account.

Police will monitor banks along the border.

"If drug traders do not receive money from selling drugs, it will deter them,'' Paibul said.

The general, who also heads the National Council for Peace and Order's legal affairs panel, has declared war on drugs.

He said the scourge had penetrated so deeply into Thai society that a single state agency was unable to combat the problem alone.

He said it might be the right time for the NCPO to exercise its "absolute power" by implementing an integrated and comprehensive approach that brought all state agencies together to tackle this massive problem.

Even though it might not be able eradicate drug trafficking, the NCPO might be able to at least make traffickers fear the long arm of the law, the general added.

Ministries that will work closely with the Office of the Narcotics Control Board and the police's Narcotics Suppression Bureau to fight the drug problem are the Interior, Public Health, Education, Labour and Justice ministries.

"Apart from the three battles - arrests, monitoring and blocking the drug trade - I will stress building preventive and immune systems as well as drug rehabilitation, because this part of the solution has been missing,'' Paibul said. He said drug monitoring and rehabilitation had failed because there is no database on drug addicts.

"After drug addicts are rehabilitated and released to live a normal life, we do not know where they are or whether they return to abusing drugs.

"The number of drug addicts who return to drugs is an indicator of the rehabilitation's success. We cannot evaluate the work without this indicator or information.''

He said he had assigned the Interior Ministry to handle the database because it works at the grassroots.

"No one knows people in the village more than village heads,'' he added.

The Corrections Department and drug rehabilitation agencies will provide information on addicts who undergo rehabilitation to the Interior Ministry, he said, adding that the ministry had to know where addicts were after rehabilitation.

Paibul said he felt it was unnecessary for schools to receive extra funding for educating students on drug-preventive measure, as the issue was part of the curriculum and teachers had a responsibility to cover the topic.

The Tambon Administrative Organisation also should not incur extra expenses in handling anti-drug work because it was part of its responsibilities.

Provincial governors will be held accountable for any failure to solve drug problems, Paibul added.

Since taking power over a month ago, the NCPO has conducted a number of prison raids nationwide as part of its crackdown on drugs in prison. Top officials at the Corrections Department have been warned they will be punished for failing to stop drug trafficking in prisons. Drugs are often smuggled in via food.

"You send these bad people into jail, but you allow them of operate a drug trade in their jail room. People who do this are worse than drug traders,'' he said.

Paibul said he was making a comprehensive list of drug networks, which included politicians and state officials.

"I called them in for questioning and asked them if they were happy to see newspaper headlines about children killing parents for not giving them money to buy drugs,'' he said.

The government will also buy x-ray machines to prevent drug smuggling, he said. This will allow it to spot drugs hidden in trucks that transported agriculture goods.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/General-blasts-banks-over-drugs-30237396.html


-- The Nation 2014-06-30

..."what he considers to be a lack of scruples in the banking sector"...

That's a bit naive. Banks have no scruples nor will they ever have. Only a set of laws will contain the banks to maneuvering inside the law. And then there still has to be a fair risk for bankers to be jailed if breaking those laws.

"Top officials at the Corrections Department have been warned they will be punished for failing to stop drug trafficking in prisons."

Again somewhat naive. Only special maximum security prisons can be kept drugs free.

"Paibul said he was making a comprehensive list of drug networks, which included politicians and state officials."

Now we're talking. Get the top of the bad guys and you're doing something useful. One can never win the war on drugs though. That business simply is far too profitable to prevent othersfrom trying to get rich with it.

lack of scruples in the banking sector

welcome to the real world WE HAVE KNOW THIS FOR DECADES

Banks are the real crooks ,

If ever a country was in dire need of complete legalization of narcotics it would be Thailand. Irrespective of the benefits/drawbacks of the liberal Portuguese model, having a police force that is supposed to be suppressing the trade, actually organizing the drug importation, manufacture, distribution and also under the table fining of users is not going to solve anything. Be brave generals, this is an opportunity not to be missed.

An ongoing unwinnable conflict that cannot be won by the anti narcotic side, human nature dictates the rules.

Still at least if some effort is made there might be some improvement.

The real solution although personally I do not favour it is to legalise all narcotic consumption.

Tax it like tobacco. alcohol etc etc and then see the bottom drop out of the market.Drug barons eradicated, state coffers full and goodness knows what society we might end up with

.

Indeed there is the prospect of an overwhelming Orwellian nightmare with the above scenario.

A war on drugs will be unwinnable, they always are. However, keeping inmates from opening bank accounts is a no-brainer.

lack of scruples in the banking sector

welcome to the real world WE HAVE KNOW THIS FOR DECADES

Couldn't agree more, even the Vatican bank was on the top ten list for money laundering at one stage which also involved the Italian Mafia. As for Europe and North America, is there any bank that hasn't engaged in illegal activities in recent years and had huge fines imposed on them? Probably top place must go to the Swiss and a few other similar countries that have accepted any blood soaked deposits no matter from whom and where. I am just surprised given the activities of the financial institutions in recent years they don't all relocate their HQ's to Las Vegas.

Right On... Power to the NCPO. So good to see them taking charge and tackling one of the biggest social problems... Drugs... corrupt bankers. This is something the last government did nothing about.. Keep up the Good work...

A war on drugs will be unwinnable, they always are. However, keeping inmates from opening bank accounts is a no-brainer.

I'm not so sure, even if you stop a criminal from opening an account what stops them doing it in another name? I would say let them open the accounts, monitor deposits and gain information from where and who they are made and finally when you have all the info that can be gained take all their assets.

Not much point in making it harder to trace the cash really.

Banks are the real crooks ,

Don't refer to them as crooks; they prefer "banksters".

Didn't Abba sing " Money Money it's' a rich man's world ".

With all this blustering, puffing and show, there still are no high level Thai bank arrests. Until that happens, all the talk of money laundering is a sham.

Some wise man once said,''I don't know which is the greater crime,to rob a bank or to found one''

5k fine!

wouldn't touch the profit

eradicating drug trafficking has been for along time but it still isn't successful. I think the law should more strict .

5k fine!

wouldn't touch the profit

I think i read somewhere that that is per day that the account existed

Sad but true - the three largest industries in the world are:-

1. Oil

2. Firearms

3. Drugs

I love soldier and <Thai language removed> love thailand because I was born in thailand yeah!

For those posters advocating legalization - are you seriously in favor of legalizing stuff like ya ba?

Legalization might work if there are means to control and ensure public health and safety. It probably requires some

elements of education and standard keeping which are sorely lacking in Thailand.

Add not having the best control over borders with neighboring countries, a massive number of tourists and this

could easily get out of hand.

Legalization is not a bad thing in itself, but it needs to be applied with some forethought and with measures that

enable regulation and control. Thailand isn't quite ready for that yet. Lets start with simpler concepts of responsible

alcohol consumption and see how it goes, eh?

As for the OP - I like this. Yes, these are mostly words right now, and the fines seem ridiculous. But - I do not think

that in the Thai context these things usually go unsaid or publicly expressed. Wonder if the last bit and the public

address are a warning shot.

I love soldier and <Thai language removed> love thailand because I was born in thailand yeah!

I love steak and kidney pudding

this is a joke until they stop the police selling drugs, which they havent done yet, how about they drug test the police and their lackys before making these emotional outbursts? not going to happen because face is all that matters

every baht you put in a bank, they lease it out 10 fold and make their money in intrests... just a bit cheaper than a loanshark, they will take all away if you are late

Banks are the real crooks ,

Don't refer to them as crooks; they prefer "banksters".

Ummm, thought that word commenced with a "w"

Words are cheap, it would be good to see some action, I think it'll be a long wait...

Rome wasn't built in a day, and the military won't / can't stop / curtail / cure all the problems currently facing Thailand over night, but they certainly seem to be opening many cans-of-worms which is a good start in the right direction. Just give them time to study, investigate and sort out the means and methods to eradicate or at lest get a better handle on who / what / where they should be concentrating their efforts.

5000 baht fine per account?

If the depositor has 50 million in that account why would 5000 baht fine bother the bank?

How about 5 million baht per account fine.

That will make them take notice.

..So all those drug dealers who use the Thai banking system will be fined $30..well whoopee doo!! C'mon mititary GET REAL here!

Go after 'em, General, but watch your back. The elite does not take kindly to scrutiny and criticism. Good luck..

..."what he considers to be a lack of scruples in the banking sector"...

That's a bit naive. Banks have no scruples nor will they ever have. Only a set of laws will contain the banks to maneuvering inside the law. And then there still has to be a fair risk for bankers to be jailed if breaking those laws.

"Top officials at the Corrections Department have been warned they will be punished for failing to stop drug trafficking in prisons."

Again somewhat naive. Only special maximum security prisons can be kept drugs free.

"Paibul said he was making a comprehensive list of drug networks, which included politicians and state officials."

Now we're talking. Get the top of the bad guys and you're doing something useful. One can never win the war on drugs though. That business simply is far too profitable to prevent othersfrom trying to get rich with it.

He have a bank account too so what he talking about drugs or stealing ?????