Angry Patong vendors heckle Phuket officials and army

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Angry Patong vendors heckle Phuket officials and army
Tanyaluk Sakoot


Suriya Sintoke: 'I have a contract with the municipality allowing me to do business on public land.'

PHUKET: -- Some 100 vendors and business owners who have been making a living on Patong Beach for years reacted angrily to the appearance on the beach this morning of municipal officials accompanied by heavily armed soldiers.

Suriya Sintoke, Managing Director of the Solemio Group, which has had two medium-sized wooden restaurants on Patong Beach selling Thai and European food, pizzas and drinks for the past three years, complained to The Phuket News that the whole thing was unfair.

“I have a contract from the Patong Municipality allowing me to build my restaurants here.

“I was informed last month that I must demolish the restaurants and if I don’t the army will do it.”

She accused the authorities of unfairness. “I was intimidated by some of the other businesses here. I believe the Municipality has singled me out.”

She shouted at the troops, “What are you doing? Why are you doing this to me? Please don’t pull down my restaurant.”

Mayor Chalermluck Kebsap said that no one was being treated unfairly and that about 500 businesses had already received notice to quit public land. “They already knew what was going to happen,” she said. “This is not about influential people.”

Col Somchai Ponatong, Officer in Charge of Training at the Royal Thai Army’s 41st Military Circle Command in Nakhon Sri Thammarat, who led the troops onto the beach, said there was no intention to deprice people of a living. He invited them to a meeting at the Royal Thai Navy 3rd Fleet base this Friday (July 11) to discuss options that would not involve them occupying public land.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/angry-patong-vendors-heckle-phuket-officials-and-army-47273.php


-- Phuket News 2014-07-09

[steelepulse]

>>“I have a contract from the Patong Municipality allowing me to build my restaurants here.

If you make a deal with the devil, you're going to get burned at some point. Som nom na. Best they can do is get a refund of their bribe paid, but good luck with that.

[TVGerry]

Sorry but you're squatters and you bribing the local government to let you build your restaurants there doesn't make it legal. It's time to take out the trash!

Go Army!

[stevenl]

Sorry but you're squatters and you bribing the local government to let you build your restaurants there doesn't make it legal. It's time to take out the trash!

Go Army!

If they do have a contract from Patong Municipality they can take Patong Municipality to court for breach of contract.

[CiaranO]

Sorry but you're squatters and you bribing the local government to let you build your restaurants there doesn't make it legal. It's time to take out the trash!

Go Army!

If they do have a contract from Patong Municipality they can take Patong Municipality to court for breach of contract.

you are bang of course. But we all know her contract is a brown paper envelope each month - I guess this is called a contract.

[oldsailor35]

Ask her how much it cost her for permission to build those restaurants and at the same time, find out who she paid the money to

[lostsoul49]

The heads of the municipality need to have their assets seized, as this was clearly abuse of their positions.

Trading for 3 years on public land?

Wonder how much rent they paid and to who?

Last but not least, I wonder how much tax was paid by these 500 businesses? I will guess it is not a single baht.

Good riddance.

[stevenl]

Sorry but you're squatters and you bribing the local government to let you build your restaurants there doesn't make it legal. It's time to take out the trash!

Go Army!

If they do have a contract from Patong Municipality they can take Patong Municipality to court for breach of contract.

you are bang of course. But we all know her contract is a brown paper envelope each month - I guess this is called a contract.

That's what I presume as well. If that is the case: illegal, making corrupt payments, she (as it says in the article, can't determine from the photo) should be taken to court, together with the people she made the payments to.

[dinom]

I have a contract from the Patong Municipality allowing me to build my restaurants here

The person who had signed that contract should be arrested, and it should be established how much money was involved for giving that contract.

Edited July 9, 2014 by dinom

[Songhua]

I have a contract from the Patong Municipality allowing me to build my restaurants here."

I think you can consider it cancelled.

[Oziex1]

And now the real fun starts, and we can expect them to start tearing each other apart.

Army: Ready - Aim - F...

[craigt3365]

Many here have an air of impunity with regards to getting caught. They know they can bribe their way out of almost anything...and get away with almost anything. Hopefully, things will change...but we'll see.

[smedly]

perhaps if they didn't intimidate tourists - take up most of the beach and call it theirs - charge ridiculous prices ripping off tourists - being generally rude - littering..............you have shat in your own crooked nest

Greed is what greed does - bye bye

[Cuchulainn]

Awwwww diddums.

Som nam naa, you low-life dross.

[terryp]

What did the immigration guy say about foreigners ...if you want to live here you must obey the LAWS...I take it this includes THAIS too

[stevenl]

perhaps if they didn't intimidate tourists - take up most of the beach and call it theirs - charge ridiculous prices ripping off tourists - being generally rude - littering..............you have shat in your own crooked nest

Greed is what greed does - bye bye

I really like the beach without the vendors, but in general at the beaches prices are reasonable and the vendors are being nice to the tourists.

[LivinginKata]

Let her show the contract to the army. Find the names of the corrupt officials and arrest them for corruption and abuse of public land. We can only hope.

[clockman]

Because the whole fabric of society is corrupt! to make changes now is going to be very difficult. Good luck to them.

[scorecard]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Sorry but you're squatters and you bribing the local government to let you build your restaurants there doesn't make it legal. It's time to take out the trash!

Go Army!

If they do have a contract from Patong Municipality they can take Patong Municipality to court for breach of contract.

May not be that simple.

A contract to do something which is illegal is in fact not a legal contract at all in most countries in the world and that includes Thailand.

[shirtless]

Follow the money trail, and seize the assets of those involved , it cant be to difficult with so many vendors out of pocket, If they cannot get a result with this you know we are being played.

[stevenl]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Sorry but you're squatters and you bribing the local government to let you build your restaurants there doesn't make it legal. It's time to take out the trash!

Go Army!

If they do have a contract from Patong Municipality they can take Patong Municipality to court for breach of contract.

May not be that simple.

A contract to do something which is illegal is in fact not a legal contract at all in most countries in the world and that includes Thailand.

Yes, it is that simple.

[monkeycountry]

Suriya Sintoke and the others knew full well that they were breaking the law when they made a deal with corrupt officials to build anything on the beach. They just assumed noone would care - and for a long time noone did

Fortunately for Thailand eventually the army cared, and now the criminals get caught for their crimes. Suriya Sintoke should just be thankful that she will probably not get arrested for breaking the law, and will likely be allowed to keep the illegal money she made over the past 3 years. Anyone want to guess how much corporate or personal income tax Suriya Sintoke paid the last 3 years?

The army should however find and arrest the municipality officials that signed the contract with Suriya Sintoke, they should be easy to find and prosecute, as their names will be on the contract, and the contract will serve as evidence.

[LivinginKata]

Weeding out all the troll/inflammatory posts.

[ChrisY1]

A contract in Thailand ???? Meaningless !!

[chinostar]

Both the municipality and the vendors are guilty of breaching the laws. The General should also go for the officials and bribe takers.

Better why not force the municipality to cover the losses of the vendors and legitimate their business by legal and proper licenses?

[stevenl]

Both the municipality and the vendors are guilty of breaching the laws. The General should also go for the officials and bribe takers.

Better why not force the municipality to cover the losses of the vendors and legitimate their business by legal and proper licenses?

So you're saying we, the taxpayers, should compensate the vendors?

[LivinginKata]

Both the municipality and the vendors are guilty of breaching the laws. The General should also go for the officials and bribe takers.

Better why not force the municipality to cover the losses of the vendors and legitimate their business by legal and proper licenses?

So you're saying we, the taxpayers, should compensate the vendors?

Like you Steven I am a Thai tax payer. No, the municipality should not cover the losses, the corrupt officials who work for the municipality should cover the losses. And I dream on ... on ...on

Only hope is that the army stays forever. But then they might fall into the corruption pit.

[monkeycountry]

Both the municipality and the vendors are guilty of breaching the laws. The General should also go for the officials and bribe takers.

Better why not force the municipality to cover the losses of the vendors and legitimate their business by legal and proper licenses?

So you're saying we, the taxpayers, should compensate the vendors?

I was wondering the same thing? Why do I have to pay for these criminals? Both the vendors and the officials involved should have their assets confiscated and be punished for their crimes.

Further, why issue licenses to occupy and thereby allow a few individuals to block land that belongs to the public, and that most people enjoy visiting? If they want to open restaurants there are plenty of places that can be rented or purchased legally for that purpose.

[RigPig]

And what about the tidy sum she has already netted from the corrupt contract by having a nice little monopoly and captive custom for the last 3 years, not enough....

Stiff

[Dukeleto]

It appears, at least, that Kuhn Suriya has not lost her Liquor licence!