PHUKET: Patong Mayor Pian Keesin gives the Phuket holiday coast capital big ticks in his annual report, urging the national government to follow through on big projects and naming English language learning as a priority.

Corruption was being beaten, he told his audience yesterday at the Phuket Graceland Resort and Spa, with municipality staff advised to never accept bribes.

''I don't take even a free meal in a restaurant and nor do any of the Patong council workers,'' he told the gathering.

It was good for Thailand's national government to be showing an interest in Phuket and Patong. ''If the Government doesn't start to look after Phuket properly now, it will be something Thailand comes to regret later,'' he said.

Patong was now fully engaged with other Phuket municipalities in seeking to improve the island, particularly Phuket's balance between tourism and nature.

The constant struggle, he said, was to cover the cost of infrastructure in Patong when only 20,000 residents paid tax to provide the services that were used by hundreds of thousands of tourists and migrant workers.

Anyone with a complaint - resident or tourist - was welcome at the Mayor's office any time, he added.

Looking to the future, he said that the sic billion baht Patong Hill Tunnel - for a long time his pet project - was almost certain to be approved within the next six months.

''Public meetings have been held and the project has the support of 86.3 percent of people,'' Mayor Pian said.

He asked for a little more patience on construction of the Phang-Muang Road behind the Jungceylon shopping complex - ''We have to put the power underground, which is the reason it has taken so long.''

Power lines and other cables would also go underground in Patong's Soi Bangla walking street, along beach road and along the parallel Rat-U-Tit 200 Pi Road, he said.

He wanted to see the more widespread use of English as a priority for 2015 when the Asean economic zone becomes reality, and his hope is that Patong's Sai Nam Yen School will soon reach international standards.