Top judge urges PM Prayut to probe

[webfact]

Top judge urges PM to probe

By KASAMAKORN CHANWANPEN 
THE NATION

 

Sirichai Wattanayothin receives some flowers and moral support from his colleagues at the Appeals Court after announcing his resignation and making a final statement regarding his failure to be appointed Supreme Court president.

 

Sirichai resigns, wants Prayut to look into nomination of supreme court chief.

BANGKOK: -- APPEALS COURT president Sirichai Wattanayothin, who announced his resignation after being demoted to an inactive position, has urged Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to look into the nomination for the top job in the judicial branch. 

 

Sirichai, disappointed with the recent reshuffle, said yesterday that he had resigned from his post and from the civil service after being offered the unprecedented position of “adviser to the Supreme Court president”. 

 

 

The position was created specially for him after he failed to get nominated as Supreme Court president.

 

He said he would not take legal action against the process or the Judicial Commission but would make a plea through the media to the public and the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to witness the treatment meted out to him and decide for themselves whether it was fair.

 

He said he did not want to damage the judicial institution and could accept what he was facing despite the pain. But he said he felt sorry for his parents and family whose reputation might be damaged because of the scandal.

 

Sirichai said he could not accept the position of adviser because it was not equal to the post of president though the commission claimed that it was. He also said it was a position created just for him and it could be unlawful.

 

Sirichai’s bid for Supreme Court’s top position ended when the Judicial Commission ruled unanimously, 14-0, that he was not appropriate for the post. 

 

In a press conference, he said there had been complaints against his decision to reverse three drug-dealing cases which had resulted in the defendants getting punished. 

 

He said he had testified before the commission and insisted that he had followed legal procedures, but its decision against him remained unchanged.

 

Witnesses who gave evidence against him were all people who had been affected by his decisions in the past, Sirichai said, adding that he had removed several officials from office due to malfeasance.

 

He said that after failing to get nominated as Supreme Court president, he had tried to remain in his post as was the usual practice, but the commission offered him the unprecedented advisory position instead.

 

Although he gave up and resigned, Sirichai hoped that Prayut, who has special powers under the Article 44 of provisional charter, would look into the nomination process of the judicial branch. 

 

Judges across the country |concerned’

 

The treatment meted out to him had caused concern among judges nationwide and shaken up the nomination tradition, which had long been based on seniority, Sirichai said.

 

Sirichai declined to say whether his situation was the result of the on-going political divide in the country and insisted that he had done his duty in a straightforward manner and he had no political ambition. 

 

The press conference yesterday was joined by dozens of judges and judicial officials who offered pink roses and moral support for the former court president.

 

Sirichai’s career in justice

 

Appeals Court president Sirichai Wattanayothin graduated from Ramkhamhaeng University’s Law Faculty and earned his Master’s degree in law from Chulalongkorn University. He also attended the Thai Bar under the Royal Partronage’s Barrister-at-Law course.

 

After he was recruited as a judge, Sirichai’s career grew over the years, starting from serving as a judge and a chief judge for several provincial, regional, and central courts, including Nakhon Sri Thammarat, the Civil Court, and the Appeals Court. 

 

He also served as Court President for the Regional 5 Juvenile and Family Court, a judge and a chief judge at the Supreme Court, before taking a senior post of the fourth Vice Court President of the Supreme Court, and eventually the Appeals Court President in 2015, which is only second to the Supreme Court President.

 

Sirichai was also appointed to serve as an executive member for the Court of Justice’s executive committees, including the Supreme Court’s judicial commission sub-panel, the executive judicial commission, as well as the judicial commission at the Supreme Court and the Appeals Court.

 

While serving as a senior judge, Sirichai was appointed to the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions to rule on several high profile cases.

 

These included the malfeasance charge against former Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat and four defendants over a case concerning a violent crackdown against People’s Alliance for Democracy protestors in 2008, and the negligence charge against former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra over alleged corruption in the rice mortgage scheme.

 

While serving as Appeals Court President, he introduced a new approach to reduce cases accumulating at the court. In 2016, the Appeals Court under his lead, won the award of excellence among high courts.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/politics/30321118

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-07-19

[Lupatria]

Get used to the situation: there is only one judge and his law here.

[canuckamuck]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

In a press conference, he said there had been complaints against his decision to reverse three drug-dealing cases which had resulted in the defendants getting punished.

 

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Witnesses who gave evidence against him were all people who had been affected by his decisions in the past, Sirichai said, adding that he had removed several officials from office due to malfeasance.

A judge pursuing the rule of law for all, even the influential, is an anathema to the system here.  Law is for the poor and the politically misaligned only.

[Artisi]

Just goes to prove, that no good deed goes unpunished, especially in Thailand. 

[Cadbury]

Not hard to figure this one out. The Judicial Commission has someone else in mind for the job. Someone with a bigger envelope than Sirichai.

[Artisi]

3 minutes ago, Cadbury said:

Not hard to figure this one out. The Judicial Commission has someone else in mind for the job. Someone with a bigger envelope than Sirichai.

Or correct political affiliations. 

[mikebell]

Thai Justice - an oxymoron.

[Eric Loh]

The judiciary system should be reformed especially on the selection of judges. 

[YetAnother]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

He said he would not take legal action against the process

now people can threaten NOT to take legal action....

[Cadbury]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Top judge urges PM to probe

I am guessing there is a lot of "face loss" going on here. Appealing to PM Prayut seems a waste of time. It is probable Prayut himself ordered the Judicial Commission to reject Sirichai.

After all Prayut is the big cheese and the one who makes all the decisions for the country; even down to the attire of twirking dancers.

[klauskunkel]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

He said he would not take legal action against the process or the Judicial Commission

of course not. He knows the system.

[greenchair]

Well that spells it out to all those uninformed going on about being promoted based on merit. 

This man has earned his stripes and well deserved the top position. 

It would be interesting to see the merits of the judge that got the job. With all that he has done for the judiciary, all they can come up with is he is not suitable for the job. 

Since they say he made the wrong decision in a drugs case, I guess they will have to let all those drug lords have a retrial now. 

[greenchair]

What an outstanding career he has had. I am proud of him that he had the highest dignity to resign. 

[Srikcir]

9 hours ago, webfact said:

he had resigned from his post and from the civil service after being offered the unprecedented position of “adviser to the Supreme Court president”. 

 

9 hours ago, webfact said:

The position was created specially for him after he failed to get nominated as Supreme Court president.

This "reassignment" might be construed as a bribe - compensation for his silence.

Looks like reform of the Justice system is complete.

[Ulic]

Three options for his being passed over.

1/ He was not corrupt and thus could not be controlled therefore he could not be trusted.

2/ He was corrupt but was aligned to the wrong group of people so he could not be trusted

to make the correct rulings.

3/ He was incompetent. Which is possible but he did have a long career with steady advancement

right up to the end. Not sure if that really means anything. 

[Dave67]

He should have known that removing people from their position for malfeasance is a sackable offense in Thailand.