Govt Exam Fraud Conspiracy: Opposition Demands Justice for 'Big Fish'

By Thai Newsroom Reporters THE ALLEGED FRAUD conspiracy over last year’s government exams has not yet been resolved as long as politicians suspected to have stood behind the despicable conspiracy remain in mystery and far from being brought to justice, a prominent opposition lawmaker said today (Sept.1). House Committee on Political Development, Mass Media & Public Participation Chair/People’s MP Pukkamon Nunarnan remarked that the scandalous fraud conspiracy over the exams for applicants to be hired as regular personnel at local government units nationwide has not yet been lawfully settled by the authorities, especially the Department of Local Administration, since those politicians and politically-associated persons currently remain at large whilst only the “small fish” would be sacrificed and prosecuted to keep the “big fish” intact from legal action pertaining to the conspiracy perpetrated with some nine billion baht in combined payoffs at stake. Pukkamon insisted that those accountable for legal action against the exam fraud conspiracy branded by Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul as utterly despicable arbitrarily should not call the case closed because, she contended, it is yet far from over as long as the politicians who had stood behind the scenes and terminally received a huge sum of payoffs originally handed out by those cheating applicants as well as their political associates and proteges are not yet brought to justice. “We need to find out who may have designed or masterminded such a conspiracy and who may have terminally received the kickback money. The people are primarily entitled to getting a truthful, unambiguous response,” the House committee chair said. She made comments following news reports that 3,000-plus cheating applicants are having their employment contracts at varied municipalities and sub-district administrations, also known as Or Bor Tor, rescinded due to having been evidently suspected to have covertly handed out payoffs to the alleged fraud conspirators. That compared to a sum of 5,925 applicants who had been earlier declared by an investigative committee attached to the Department of Local Administration to have cheated on the exams. The Department of Local Administration is part of the Ministry of Interior where the prime minister is taking charge in concurrent fashion. In addition to a number of suspects allegedly connected with the Bhumjaithai, core of the current coalition government, de facto party boss Newin Chidchob’s right-hand man, namely Thongchua Chartkitcharoen, had allegedly coordinated with one of the prime suspects identified as Ruengdej Sirikich, director of Srinakharinwirot University’s Educational & Psychological Test Bureau. Ruengdej had earlier testified before the House Committee on Law, Justice & Human Rights to involve Thongchua who had quietly contacted him as part of the exam fraud conspiracy in which two former chiefs of the Department of Local Administration, namely Narucha Kosacivilize and Thirut Supavibulpol, had also been allegedly involved. Similar fraud conspiracies over recruitment exams for government personnel had allegedly not only occurred at the Department of Local Administration but the Department of Provincial Administration dating back to the time of former interior minister Chavarat Charnvirakul, father of the current prime minister, nearly over the last couple of decades.