Thai police force facing shortage of personnel

[rametindallas]

Pay them decently and things will change.

Police get a pittance of a salary and subsidies it with corruption.

100k a month and one corrupt indiscretion and your out.

It's simple really.

Sent from my LG-D858

But they don't do anything but sit in their air conditioned police boxes and watch TV. Paying them more will not cause them to actually enforce the law.

one corrupt indiscretion and your out.

Police all over the world cover for their 'brothers' and none will be 'out'.

Sorry for the cynicism.

[Lupatria]

Good news! Next step is a second chance to all those who got caught cheating in the police force entry exams.

[Kudel]

Nuff guys in jail who can join the force

[pinkpanther99]

This news isn't that surprising given Thailand's aging population. It's probably a similar scenario with doctors, teachers and military personnel.

That said, this could now be the ideal time for the powers that be to completely reorganise the Royal Thai Police ahead of 2021.

Although, I wont hold my breath on that happening.

[Searat7]

I wonder how the police they have are deployed. I have lived in Silom for many years and I have never once seen a policeman patrolling the sidewalks....only see them directing traffic, collecting money or there for some special effort/event.

[northernjohn]

was a given as soon as the gravy train way under threat. How do you get staff at low pay? The spiral has started, the plug has been removed, the hole looms large.

A sensible post.

Yes the gravy train is starting to leave the station and under the conditions of employment it is easy to replace the retiring officers.

How ever as you allude to that train is leaving the station and it will be hard to replace them unless wages and conditions are improved.

BANGKOK: -- With its image and integrity already in tatters due to recent public criticism, the Royal Thai Police (RTP) will also face a serious personnel shortage in the next two decades, as many officers will be retiring over the next six years.

Hopefully under the guidance of a new government that image will improve because the honesty level in the department will improve.

Only a fool and an idiot of the tenth degree would think 5 months would show a tangible difference in the way they operate. New personal in place and some arrests being made that should have been made under the last regime but that is about it.

Now to come up with decent pay and benefits and they will have a much better chance of attracting decent personnel.

Give it time kids. Rome wasen't built in a day so stop trying to burn it down before it gets built.

[northernjohn]

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maybe they should reduce the 'admission fees' the prospective policeman has to pay...

There is a lot of truth in what you say. Also toughen up the tests they take for admission. The admission fee almost demands corruption.

" Of the total, 200,637 are men and 16,321 are women."

Something is missing here. But I can't quite put my finger on it. To round it out, this fact needs an appendage to it.

I was in Chiang Mai immigration yesterday. Most of the staff were women.

I recall a domestic dispute in Canada with my next door neighbor. His wife called the RCMP and they sent out one women. Single handedly she calmed down a potentially violent man. They can do things men can't. A man would have been depending on his physical ability and just left the fellow mad.

This of course takes training that I doubt the Thai officers get.

[northernjohn]

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Shortage? Maybe too many have been transferred to inactive posts.

Or not enough. Wonder how you go about firing them when they are so inept you have to get rid of them?

It doesn't take a Rhodes scholar to figure out where the problems are in regard to the RTP, the whole shebang should be scrapped and reinvented with advisers from abroad (Not China), for a country that prides itself on being a professional tourist destination, the police force especially should be at least as good if not better that H.K or Singapore, alas that is not the case , it would be the most useless department alongside the sub- standard , Burmese police force. width=32 alt=coffee1.gif>

At least as good as the Mexican police they to are a big tourist destination.

EDIT

I just realized there are lots of countries that you would not want to set your police department for you.

You only cited 4.

[WitawatWatawit]

Shortage? Maybe too many have been transferred to inactive posts.

A transfer wasn't required.

[ginjag]

Pay them decently and things will change.

Police get a pittance of a salary and subsidies it with corruption.

100k a month and one corrupt indiscretion and your out.

It's simple really.

Sent from my LG-D858

Leopards and spots ???? money never changed cancer.

[ginjag]

Honestly. Upon reading the headline my initial thought was if all the Thai police were gone Thailand would possibly function better or more appropriately. What actual good do the Thai police do or offer to citizens or residents?

You feel this way because you don't have hundred million dollars and therefore been receiving excellent service from the BIB. It is a paid security force and you haven't been paying the dues.

The BIBs need more help during the high season, in the north. They are very busy escorting luxury vans full of VIPs.

There must be a lot of important meetings in Chiang Rai.

Every county is the same, Udon etc, everyday escorted convoys of (NON) VIPs, police blocking traffic lights to let them through.

I had a more VIP government position than most of these nuts, I used my car to go to venues. This place is full of BS unbelievable.

[WitawatWatawit]

I was in Chiang Mai immigration yesterday. Most of the staff were women.

I recall a domestic dispute in Canada with my next door neighbor. His wife called the RCMP and they sent out one women. Single handedly she calmed down a potentially violent man. They can do things men can't. A man would have been depending on his physical ability and just left the fellow mad.

This of course takes training that I doubt the Thai officers get.

Women do handle certain issues better, but sadly, few Thai males, in my experience, will accept the authority of a woman unless she is rich and influential and backed up by a "heavy duty presence".

[LukDod]

...<snipped>...Do you know or does anyone know the real salary amounts for Thai police? I am lead to believe they start out at or near the rate of a Thai teacher.

******************************

Christopher Moore, the author, wrote a lengthy article about the Thai police., including

a chart of salaries, and it can be found here:

http://cgmoore.com/blog/view.asp?id=784

Go to the middle of the page and click on the blue highlighted word "chart' to

see the list of police salaries for various position levels. It's quite shocking!

[Pib]

Looks like too many chiefs and not enough indians there.

My thoughts exactly

Ditto

[seajae]

now if they actually had the police do police work, ie, catch thieves, arrest criminals and most of all patrol the roads and issue fines for all the traffic offences and making sure they were paid the govt would have more than enough money to offer the police decent wages, it would slow/possibly stop a lot of the back handers they police now use in their tea money scams as well as stop a great deal of the road deaths/traffic offences as the thai drivers would realize they can no longer do as they please on the road and have to obey the laws. It would also see a lot of thais have to get licences to drive their cars and motor bikes, make them register them and remove a lot of under age riders/drivers if the police had a big presence on the roads to enforce the rules. Trouble is I doubt the ones in charge would want to lose their personal retirement savings plans they have in place through the currewnt scams.

[monkey4u]

With it's image and integrity in tatters in the past few years

Its been in tatters for several decades

[Don Aleman]

Now, right now, is the time to turn around Thai law enforcement from a universal laughing stock to a respected agency.

Cull all the ranks retiring/firing/maybe jailing the corrupt/physically mentally disabled and quit trying to fix a broken egg !

Hire a new, foreign, proven/educated/experienced Supt. Of Police and

have him/staff prepare a total new set of hiring qualifications including :

Ages 21 to 35

Physically fit, ( test )

2 years university

Background check

Reward top candidates with 2 or even 3 times present starting salaries/benefits and something brand new -- THAI RESPECT !

[Sviss Geez]

With a country with 2000 generals vs. 200 generals in the US, what do you expect?

It is irrelevant what ranks the US has but, out of interest, the US police forces have generals? Or are you referring to the US armed forces? In that case what you said is even more irrelevant.

[Emster23]

My semi optimistic side thinks "Maybe indicator of anti-corruption push. What person would go deeply in debt to buy police officer job without being sure money can be paid back through kick backs, tea money, extortion etc?" As we know, markets are not comfortable with uncertainty.

"high-energy jobs such as patrolmen, detectives and anti-narcotics officers."... are they implying those people had to work when at work? Counting tea money does involve a certain amount of concentration and math skills... I have seen cops on beach last 3 days (a record for Jomtien).

[atyclb]

With a country with 2000 generals vs. 200 generals in the US, what do you expect?

Someone's making a killing on stars

those were my general thoughts as well

[rubl]

Maybe our Pol. Captain Chalarm can help in setting up a promotional campaign. As erudite man of the world, having written constitutions, and made praising remarks, surely he can come with some bright ideas. If only the public realised how much they have the police to thank for.

Maybe start with a slogan like 'any day is a good day for presents'

[toybits]

The thing you should ask yourself is "Would there REALLY be any change since they are usually not there when you need them...?"

[ParadiseLost]

Its great news that so many RTP Officers are retiring / running away, now maybe they can start to restructure the whole corrupt and graft ridden mess to make a credible organisation.

You do realise it will be their sons, nephews, cousins, friends, relatives of friends, ... that are promoted to any positions of importance.

Noticed how easy it is to become an officer?

"A recent moral-boosting policy, in which all officers above the age of 53 are promoted to commissioned status without their old positions being filled, has created a shortage of non-commissioned officers."

Do only officers get a go at the trough? Perhaps that is what they thought the term 'non-commissioned' means...

Reminds me of someone:

[ParadiseLost]

Thai police force facing shortage of personnel

Thai police farce forcing shortage of personnel

[Mudcrab]

Now, right now, is the time to turn around Thai law enforcement from a universal laughing stock to a respected agency.

Cull all the ranks retiring/firing/maybe jailing the corrupt/physically mentally disabled and quit trying to fix a broken egg !

Hire a new, foreign, proven/educated/experienced Supt. Of Police and

have him/staff prepare a total new set of hiring qualifications including :

Ages 21 to 35

Physically fit, ( test )

2 years university

Background check

Reward top candidates with 2 or even 3 times present starting salaries/benefits and something brand new -- THAI RESPECT !

No psychological assessment? There are plenty of cowards and bully boys in police uniform hiding behind a gun or a taser in the west. They seem to be attracted to the power for whatever reason.

[Number 3]

was a given as soon as the gravy train way under threat. How do you get staff at low pay? The spiral has started, the plug has been removed, the hole looms large.

Very positive news indeed this.

Less coppers on the streets here equals increased safety and risk of being stitched up. Pattaya may have a chance at becoming a stable place, one not strangled by the police/mafia relationship.

Let them bleed out of the ranks.

Dictator prayuth can then slowly replace these tossers with army personnel. Who only provide fair just and transparent justice no ? Just repeating what the dear leader/dictator states to be the MO.

[mikiea]

like a chicago city street repair crew. 1 in the pickup sleeping,1 watching pretty girls walk by, 1 going to get takeout for the crew, 1 site forman reading the paper, 1 guy digging the hole, 1 union stewart to make sure no one is over worked....... then there is the night shift to finish up :-)

[mikiea]

ehhhhhhh..... who led you there, arrest that man :-)

[mojorison]

This analysis flies in the face of logic. It has been recommended elsewhere by advisory groups to drastically reduce the number of police in Thailand. (Don't ask me for the source, cos it was long ago I read this report...but I'll try to dig it up). Thailand has a police force one and a half times the size of USA, UK, Australia and several European countries forces (Per 100,000 population). The obvious difference is, that the police in more developed countries earn more, are better educated, and thus less likely to be corrupt (the link is fact, not fiction), and better able to manage the task of policing, through better training and interaction with the public they protect. The report was advising to slash 70,000 police jobs. Educate the rest, pay them what you save by not having the bottom feeding 70,000, and everyone lives happily ever after. Simple. Let them retire I say.

[transam]

Perhaps the staff they have should be given daily duties instead of disappearing to run their own private businesses for starters.

And what are the commanders doing...?.... ......They ain't commanding thats for sure.............