More legal problems await jailed Thai politician Chonsawat

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SAMUT PRAKAN
More legal problems await jailed Chonsawat
THE NATION


Chonsawat

Politician may face charges of giving large chunks of state budget to temples

BANGKOK: -- HIGH-PROFILE local politician Chonsawat Asavahame, who began serving his jail term on Tuesday, looks like he may face more legal trouble.

The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) revealed yesterday that it was about to conclude its investigation into Chonsawat's alleged abuse of the state budget. He is accused of illegitimately allocating hundreds of millions of baht of the state budget to local temples between 2011 and 2013.

"An NACC fact-finding subcommittee is completing its investigation report," NACC member Supa Piyajitti said.

Chonsawat, a son of former deputy interior minister-turned fugitive Wattana, was given a jail term of a year and half as the Supreme Court upheld an earlier verdict convicting him of electoral fraud during the 1999 municipal election in Samut Prakan province.

The final ruling on the case was made on Tuesday, forcing Chonsawat to immediately go to jail. While the case was in court, Chonsawat managed to establish himself as a key politician in the province that was once dominated by his father.

Wattana, meanwhile, went on the run before the verdict prosecuting him on corruption charges came out in 2008.

However, despite the scandals surrounding his father, Chonsawat has proved to be popular among local voters. Even his marriage to actress Janie Thienphosuvan became the talk of the town last year.

Chonsawat was removed from his post as chief executive of the Samut Prakan Provincial Administrative Organisation in June over alleged irregularities in budget spending.

Meanwhile, Samut Prakan Prison chief Paisan Suwannaraksa said yesterday that the politician had adjusted well to life behind bars.

Separately, former Samut Prakan Pheu Thai MP Worachai Hema said jailing Chonsawat would not affect the state of politics in Samut Prakan.

"The political situation here won't change much. He has two brothers who can replace him in local administration," Worachai said, adding that it would be difficult for anybody else to take over the Asavahame family's political stronghold.

He pointed out that the same network of election canvassers would continue operating, hence members of the Asavahame family would still remain present in local politics.

Worachai emphasised that politics in Samut Prakan was divided into two categories. The first one is at the national level, where Samut Prakan voters had been voting for Pheu Thai for a long time; and the second is at the local level, where agencies like Provincial Administrative Organisation (PAO), Provincial Council, Subdistrict Administrative Organisation (SAO) and municipality, were all controlled by the Asavahames.

"No Asavahame family member has been able to beat a Pheu Thai candidate at the national level," Worachai said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/More-legal-problems-await-jailed-Chonsawat-30266017.html

-- The Nation 2015-08-06

[american12bthai]

when you vote for business men and not country men. . you lose.

[worgeordie]

The news reported that Chonsawat is been housed in his own cell,

so its not only in the real World that laws for Us and them is the norm,

but also extends to when/if they receive a prison sentence,also you

can bet hes not eating prison food.

regards worgeordie

[smedly]

I believe there are certain unregulated institutions in Thailand that are being set up and used primarily for money laundering, something that needs to stop

when you look at the last few years of money scandals reported here they always seem to be connected in some way or another to a certain type of unregulated institution

[tomacht8]

They should try to get back the stolen money from him.

Confiscate his privat assets.

[halloween]

Well the good news is he has two brothers who can replace him in local administration. It appears the people of Samut Prakan have a predilection, possibly even an addiction, to electing criminals to office. I can only assume they see taxes as having been a form of theft, so who cares if someone, especially OUR someone, steals them from the government.

At least they get plenty of juicy gossip.

[ratcatcher]

[radjag]

Chonsawat was previously into racing cars - it was reported in the BKK Post that he owns dozens of luxury cars. I wonder whether AMLO or Customs will take a look at the registration and tax records of those - I doubt it.

[thhMan]

And the Temple in good faith did not question it....

Damn religion and all the idiots that follow it

[EnglishJohn]

Ticks every box to be a red-shirt hero.

All that money - and if they vote for the next family member put forward, they might get a bit more of it.

I wonder if parts of this country will ever jump the 300 year gap and join the rest of the world.

[klauskunkel]

Even his marriage to actress Janie Thienphosuvan became the talk of the town last year.

... and his divorce less than a year later for beating her up was also quite talked about

[slapout]

Another nest of vipers that needs cleaning up and thrown out.with the rest of the garbage. Extended family and cronies fill the local offices supported and paid for with the publics money. The numbers bandied around indicate they must be as proflic as the rat population when it comes to reproduction.

[billd766]

He is only doing what his hero Thaksin Shinawatra did.

Filling up politics with the family.

[Valentine]

This wife beater has many more charges to come aside from misuse of state funds.

The last 4 or 5 sentences in the OP highlight one of the many fundamental things wrong with politics & democracy (not only here). The fact that there is a network of family, cronies, political canvassers, who believe it is their right to have absolute control over their turf.

[Mudcrab]

Is nothing sacred?

They have even pirated Mr Potato Head.

[z42]

Absolute and utter scumbag. His track record for violence is horrendous by any standards. I hope he gets the pongpat treatment now he is inside.

[slapout]

Someday someone is going to wipe that shit eating grin off ofr his face and i doubt he will enjoy the experience. His okd man is hiding out in his casino and is in the same pedertiment as is Thaksin and many other abscounders from legal process in Thailand.

They have a fiekd to run and play in that costs them a price far above normal fare paid by those folks traveling /operating legally. Then ass in the reality of restricfted travel to many parts of the world and you have a never ending decrease in play / sand box area for the culprits to explore piss in./on

[scorecard]

Chonsawat was previously into racing cars - it was reported in the BKK Post that he owns dozens of luxury cars. I wonder whether AMLO or Customs will take a look at the registration and tax records of those - I doubt it.

And investigate where the money came from to buy dozens of luxury cars - unusual wealth?

[Asiantravel]

just curious if a guy like this gets any special treatment? I could hardly imagine his 18 months would be spent in the general population of an ordinary Thai jail?or am I wrong?

[scorecard]

Vattana.jpg Chonsawat.jpg

gf.jpg

Is this the vattana son who many years back tried to run over a cop who had the gall to stop his car, somewhere in the Bangkok suburbs.

The cop had to jump onto the bonnet of the car to avoid being run over. And the cop then latched onto the windscreen wipers.

The son then threw the car left and right at high speed to try to shake the cop off the bonnet. It didn't work.

More cops stopped the car, and sonny boy then tried the line of 'do you know who my father is'?

Father was interviewed by the media - he laughed and said, 'well if he's a naughty boy two more times then I'll have a little talk to him', all a big joke.

Edited August 6, 2015 by scorecard

[SoilSpoil]

I wonder what is more appalling: that people like him exist or that people actually support and vote for gangsters like this?

[ratcatcher]

Vattana.jpg Chonsawat.jpg

gf.jpg

Is this the vattana son who many years back tried to run over a cop who had the gall to stop his car, somewhere in the Bangkok suburbs.

The cop had to jump onto the bonnet of the car to avoid being run over. And the cop then latched onto the windscreen wipers.

The son then threw the car left and right at high speed to try to shake the cop off the bonnet. It didn't work.

More cops stopped the car, and sonny boy then tried the line of 'do you know who my father is'?

Father was interviewed by the media - he laughed and said, 'well if he's a naughty boy two more times then I'll have a little talk to him', all a big joke.

This character is a real "piece of work"

Read the link and scroll down to post #78.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/121774-mayor-charged-after-drunken-fight-with-police/page-4

Warning to members. This is from Thai Visa 7 years ago. Be warned there are pictures of women en deshabille.

You have to wonder what kind of women would hang around with this creature.

Hope this is informative.

Edited August 6, 2015 by ratcatcher

[smedly]

oh and not to forget he will be banned from office for 5 tears, then he will begin where he left off, hell you don't even have to be in the country to rip off the people here, how (deleted) up is that, .........one word - Jail and I mean Jail for these scum, that is the only way this country will mature ...........apply the law to everyone equally - no immunity no exceptions, hate to admit but China is taking a very big step in fight against corruption, healthcare for all would be funded for a long time if these corrupt a'holes were called to account

The good General PM now doesn't seem to have the will to take them on which is sad really, he could have made a huge difference if he had remained focused on what was needed for the good of the country and to hell with the international critics, you know what you need to do...................do it, you will be remembered as the bull or the lamb.......waiting for the next coup or ?

[hanuman2543]

Ticks every box to be a red-shirt hero.

All that money - and if they vote for the next family member put forward, they might get a bit more of it.

I wonder if parts of this country will ever jump the 300 year gap and join the rest of the world.

Read the last paragraph. He has absolutely nothing to do with the red-shirts, so he can't be a red- shirt hero.

[/quote

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

So, it's in the BKK Post today that he's been released from prison early, courtesy of an annual royal pardon decree that reduced his (and many others, apparently) remaining sentence. He served about a year of his original 18-month sentence.