'No room for corruption'

[Lite Beer]

'No room for corruption'
The Nation

Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha, in his capacity as the Army commander-in-chief, offers alms to monks as part of a ceremony to mark the 28th anniversary of the Royal Thai Army headquarters

BANGKOK: -- Prayuth vows to dump ministers who fail to perform; Cabinet list awaits royal endorsement

The new Prime Minister, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, last night submitted the list of his Cabinet members for royal endorsement, according to a source close to the ruling junta.

General Prayuth assured that members of his Cabinet would be replaced if their performance was poor or their morals low.

"Any Cabinet member who does not work well will be replaced," he said. "There is no limit to the number of Cabinet reshuffles.

"Bad people will have to go and whoever is corrupt will be sent to jail. So please do not worry."

He was attempting to allay concerns about the quality of his Cabinet members, many of whom are expected to come from the military.

"Don't be too wary that there are no good people left" to serve the country in the Cabinet, said Prayuth, who also heads the ruling National Council for Peace and Order, and the Army.

Prayuth said the presence of military figures in the Cabinet was necessary in order to deal with certain security issues.

He also insisted that he would serve the country for the benefit of the country and the people, adding that he did not side with any particular political party.

"I want everyone in the country to look at the country first and not pay much attention to individuals," he said.

He said that he had the final say on the choice of Cabinet members.

Prayuth was speaking during his weekly TV programme "Returning Happiness to the People in the Country", which was broadcast nationwide last night.

The top general yesterday began his speech by expressing his gratitude for receiving the royal command appointing him as prime minister. He also acknowledged his responsibility to "move the country towards a sustainable future".

"I am happy to bear the responsibility in moving the country towards a sustainable future. From now on, I will be responsible for moving the country and the people forward and working together for national development, for the benefit of all," he said.

Prayuth went on to say that there would also be mechanisms for checks and balances to ensure transparency, integrity and fairness.

"Today, we have to work rapidly on strengthening every system to be more resilient against corruption, especially in our public service, be they civil servants, police or military, and the related private sector," he said.

A source close to the NCPO said that former Army chief General Anupong Paochinda, Prayuth's former boss, was likely to become the new interior minister while former Interior deputy permanent secretary Suthee Sukboon would be deputy interior minister.

Former national police chief General Adul Sangsingkaew was expected to become the minister of social development and human security and Akom Termpitthayapaisit was likely to be appointed the Prime Minister's Office minister, according to another source from the PM's Office.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/No-room-for-corruption-30242116.html

-- The Nation 2014-08-30

[Somtamnication]

Corruption has not stopped in Phuket. This is a huge undertaking for him and it may be too big for him to tackle. Just sayin'.

[meatboy]

as Lonnie donegan would sing."my dustbins full of corruption" how do you know its full?cause there's no more room inside.

[kurnell]

Yes and Yingluck said much the same thing

[EricBerg]

No room for corruption sounds a bit like no room for Thailand.

Not one man and not one government can root out corruption. It will be a long process. But I hope and think Prayuth is the man to give things a good start.

Butttttttttttt for this the big shot of the previous corrupt governments MUST be put in prison. So far only Sondhi got a long year sentence but is hopping around in freedom on bail.

[englishoak]

And pigs might fly ...........

[Crazy chef 1]

sounds too good to be true-wish him success.

[NongKhaiKid]

In all the years I have been involved with LoS first as a tourist then as a resident every administration i can remember has said the same thing, only the actual words have changed.

The never ending promises of a War / Fight / Crackdown etc on corruption hasn't exactly been a raging success so why should it change much now.

What would go a long way is something that those in positions of power are reluctant to do and that is initiate zero tolerance with no hesitation to charge offenders no matter who they are, then if convicted given sentences appropriate to the wrongdoing.

[ezzra]

With all the bombastic proclamations, he's after all only one man and he's as good

as the people that are with him, no way in the world to stamp out corruptions,

it is here to stay and flourish, the question remains, can you minimize corruptions

to a mangagable level? if you have done that, your work is done....

[Bluespunk]

"No room for corruption"

Experience would suggest there is plenty of room.

[Basil B]

Corruption has been a way of life ever since man set foot in Thailand...

Eradicating it totally in Thailand is a impossible mission, but knocking a big dent in it is not.

Starting at the top, ensuring that ministers, MP's, senators, judges, chefs of police, top civil servants are not only uncorrectable but they should also be responsible for ensuring those under them are not corrupt and they also take action to ensure those under them are not corrupt all the way down.

Most importantly the courts should not treat it as a misdemeanour, but as a felony.

[Manbing]

Somebody forgot to include 'more' in the title sentence.

[Basil B]

With all the bombastic proclamations, he's after all only one man and he's as good

as the people that are with him, no way in the world to stamp out corruptions,

it is here to stay and flourish, the question remains, can you minimize corruptions

to a mangagable level? if you have done that, your work is done....

It really depends upon the level of effort he puts into it...

[IamNoone88]

I think I would forgo the democracy for a while in favour of stamping out the corruption and nepotism. However, I will only believe this when I see some stiff sentences being handed down.

The "low performance and moraeas = replacement" and "really bad people = jail", does not cut it.

Time to to stop sugar coating corruption and start handing out some tough & deterrent sentences.

Nothing to show for it so far..........

[Manbing]

Corruption and democracy have very contentious points in this country. No least because the interpritations of the concepts are polymorphous.

[Bigfarang1948]

Corruption has not stopped in Phuket. This is a huge undertaking for him and it may be too big for him to tackle. Just sayin'.

Yep

He took a bold step with this statement. Corruption has too many heads here so I guess he will chop off one head at a time, but I fear the snake will only grow another head in another location or business

I applaud his efforts

[metisdead]

A post containing comments that can be construed as being negative about the imposition of Martial Law or the Coup has been removed. An off topic baiting post about the wai has been removed as well as the reply.

[theoldgit]

He did say in his address. that the Thai people seem to accept corruption, and it's this mind-set that has to change, adding that this may take generations.

By the way, doesn't he speak quickly?

[h90]

No room for corruption and the Shin family is still running around free.

A good example that corruption doesn't have any consequences

[bristolgeoff]

as long as you don,t get caught doing it.it will never die

[visionchaser45]

Can you say, GT-200? That was either corruption or gross stupidity. It was an army deal, wasn't it?

[sandrew33]

Chok Dee.

I think any stamping out of corruption obviously starts by appointing ones friends and patrons to most senior government positions. This approach coupled with the removal of all checks and balances is exactly the way one removes corruption.

Some might argue it centralises power and creates an environment for corruption albeit amongst a smaller more powerful group. But I don't agree. These are the good people.

Edited August 30, 2014 by sandrew33

[junk1e]

He has already done more than all previous governments have done in years. To wipe out all corruption is a goal. Not all goals are achievable but starting at the top is the way to go. Every country in the world has corruption whether they admit it or not. Thailand has run on it for years, and if anybody can change that then I think he is the man to do it. Western democracies may not be happy with an unelected government, but fail to recognise that previous governments have been elected on the back of corruption. He should ignore Western protests and focus on taking Thailand forwards which was the main theme of his speech last night.

[ramrod711]

"Bad people will have to go and whoever is corrupt will be sent to jail. So please do not worry."

I realize that he was speaking about his cabinet, but I would like to see some more people going to jail for corruption. The ones who are hi-so, that can't explain their wealth, for starters.

[Lupatria]

Pandora's box comes to mind. If every corrupt person in LOS will turn against him- even he may loose grip on power, no matter how many tanks fill the streets.

[behonset]

does that mean the Chinese-thai that regularly practice fraud and corruption will now have to stop. wait and see

[lostmebike]

Without corruption, this wouldn't be Thailand.

As the man himself says, this will take generations and even if it does improve, it will always be there in the background, waiting to morph back into the monster it has always been.

[belg]

is it first of april already ?

if there is no room, they will build a whole new building for it ...

[MobileContent]

Thailand should do the same as Singapore and some European countries. Offering a bribe is a criminal offense and as well accepting the bribe.

A cop in Singapore that takes 100 S$ is going to jail for at least 1 year, being kicked out of the force.

[Big Guns]

To eradicate corruption in Thailand would take a generation. Its ingrained in all aspects of society. It would need changes to family, religion, education and the legal/political structure.