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Phuket Park Probe Hots Up: Bribery Claim and Pressure Drive Out Director

Monday, May 5, 2014
PHUKET: The Director of Phuket's Sirinath National Park has been transferred because of ''pressure from investors'' that allegedly included an offer of 30 million baht to legitimise a park border property land title.

The transfer of Cheewapad Cheewatam at the beginning of May was sad because he had been working to right wrongs, said Samak Dannapee, the Director of Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation.

Khun Cheewapad had allegedly been offered 30 million baht to sign off on a chanote title deed covering 300 rai in dispute,Khun Samak said.

''The pressure is constant because the people involved in the examination of the border deeds have great influence and lots of money,'' he said.

Khun Samak said following the departure of the park's director, a new and more aggressive phase of the investigation, initiated when Damrong ''The Demolisher'' Pidech was Director General of the department, would begin.

Khun Cheewapad's replacement has been chosen and will be on Phuket soon, Khun Samak said.

Comments

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I just want to know when are the bulldozers coming so I can cheer them on?

Posted by The Night Mare on May 5, 2014 19:14

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@ Ed be interesting to know precisely what this pressure was from these people of Influence & lots of money I guess there not telling you, sounds like a honest man as a brown paper bag of 30 million baht was allegedly refused, his reward for being honest and righteous he's transferred to some obscure backwater, one speculates what hope has a honest Thai official have when he railroaded elsewhere due to influential wealthy people want him to be corrupt as they apparently are.

Posted by slickmelb on May 5, 2014 20:31

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And here we have Thailands wonderful slander laws, where even factual proven allegations and simply facts, can not be stated for fear of loss of face and legal retribution. Its always 'persons of influence' and vague nameless entities.

Whats needed is a form of notPhuketWan.com, based outside of Thailand, with no local face or presence prepared to print the nitty gritty. What persons of influence own what land, who controls which tuktuk organisation, the names and faces behind these constant corruption issues.

Posted by LivinLOS on May 6, 2014 08:38

Editor Comment:

It does not seem to have dawned on authorities in Thailand - and I do hope readers don't mind a brief descent into coarseness - that it's better to have critics inside the tent pissing out than outside the tent pissing in. The present military v media landmark action will inevitably produce critics aiming both ways.

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LivinLOS, If you want the job... it's yours. Why not setup your own website, and try and report the facts outside of Thailand, rather difficult IMO if your not actually in the field. Very easy to start pointing the finger unless you have had 'real' experience of reporting issues (especially in Thailand) knowing the potential consequences of such actions.

I have great admiration for this website, and for the Editor and his work colleagues who have been brave enough to report on such matters with a certain degree of frankness which seldom exists on other Thai-based websites, despite the obvious risk to themselves.

I appreciate the effort it must take to carry-on with this website, despite the impending cloud that that is looming over their heads.

Posted by reader on May 15, 2014 01:08


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