08 November 2015•Update: 09 November 2015
By Max Constant
BANGKOK
Thailand's junta has denied any irregularities took place in a $20 million military-run park project in the country’s south, despite a police investigation which claims to have produced evidence of corruption.
Military spokesman Gen. Winthai Suwaree told the Bangkok Post on Sunday that according to the latest information by police there was no suggestion of such irregularity.
"The project followed proper bureaucratic rules and every step was transparent and open," he added.
Several newspapers have reported that an investigation has been launched by police into an army general and a colonel suspected of having solicited money in negotiations with contractors involved in the Ratchapakdi Park project, which includes seven giant statues of past Thai monarchs.
The 35-hectare (10,000 sq. meter) project was opened last August near Hua Hin, 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of Bangkok at a cost of $20 million.
Quoting a police source, the Bangkok Post provided additional details of the case Sunday.
It reported that two owners of factories where statues were cast had said during police interrogation Friday that they were asked by a businessman and an army colonel to pay commission fees between 4-8 million baht ($111,000-$222,000).
Corruption in Thailand takes on many forms, but one of the most common is when a civil servant charged with pricing a state-sponsored scheme asks a bidder to include an additional percentage on top of his usual price, which he then takes as his cut.
On Sunday, the Bangkok Post published the name of the suspected colonel, saying he had fled Thailand to Myanmar Nov. 1, and authorities in Naypyitaw were being asked to facilitate his return.
The story, however, was removed from the website within a few hours.
The colonel was also accused Wednesday of having solicited money from a private company who had been contracted to produce 100,000 T-shirts for a Dec. 11 “Bike for Dad” event -- a nationwide cycling tour in honor of ailing King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
According to a highly placed unnamed police source quoted by the Post the price of the T-shirt contract was inflated so money could be given to intermediaries, among them the suspected colonel.
The case is connected to the arrest last month of three high profile figures on charges of lese majeste: well-known fortune teller Suriyan Sucharitpolwong, his assistant Jirawong Watthanathewasilp and Police Major Prakrom Warunprapa, who was subsequently found dead in his cell Oct. 24.
Authorities have claimed Warunprapa committed suicide, the Cross Cultural Foundation, a Thai NGO, has said no independent forensic examination was conducted on his body.
The fortune teller Sucharitpolwong, who enjoyed close relationships with members of the ruling junta which seized power in May last year, is alleged to have played on his royal connections to extort 100 million bahts (2.79 million dollars) from a large Thai beverage company in relation to “Bike for Dad”.
During such events, royalists countrywide buy commemorative T-shirts or pins -- often sold as limited edition -- to show their love for the royal family.
The company, whose name has not been made public, alerted the police in mid-October, which led to the arrests.
The arrests come as the health of the 87-year-old highly revered King deteriorates, and the country prepares for the succession of unpopular Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn to the throne.
Vajiralongkorn divorced his third wife last year after members of her family became embroiled in a lese majeste scandal after they were accused of using their royal status for personal gain.
After the scandal broke, Vajiralongkorn stripped Srirasmi Suwadee’s family members of their royal titles and she was “authorized” to resign from the Royal Family a few days later.
