Politicians' assets to be targeted in corruption clampdown

Thailand’s military council, which seized power last week, is setting up a special panel to probe corruption in the former government, it announced today.

It is empowering the council to seize illegally acquired wealth of corrupt politicians.

“There is a sufficient evidence to believe that (members of the former government) abused their power to reap benefits for their personal gain, and caused serious damage to the country,” said the official announcement on television.

“The council, therefore, orders the investigation into their work and projects which were approved or endorsed by the Cabinet.”

It said Sawat Chotiphani, a former election commissioner, had been appointed chief of the new committee, for which no formal name appeared to have been announced.

If there is sufficient evidence to prove wealth has been acquired illegally, the committee has the power to confiscate assets of the politician, his or her spouse, and children -including those under 18 years old, it said.

Days after they ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a bloodless coup, the military revived the state’s National Counter Corruption Commission, which is to hold its first meeting tomorrow.

The NCCC, however, can only seek to prosecute cases through the courts, and cannot seize assets or otherwise enforce its findings.

Critics of Thaksin have charged that he used his official position to enrich himself and his associates. The army cited corruption as one of the reasons for their takeover.

Other members of the special committee established today include Auditor General Jaruvan Maintaka; the chief of the National Counter Corruption Commission; the Attorney General; the heads of the state Anti Money Laundering Office, the central bank, the Stock Exchange of Thailand and the Securities and Exchange Commission; and the chief of the military’s legal department.

Officials believe Shinawatra may have whisked some of his assets out of the country aboard two aircraft days before the coup.

An official from Thai Airways International said he wanted the new ruling military council to investigate the incidents.

Speculation has been rife in Thailand that Thaksin may have sneaked money out of the country in the days leading up to the coup, but there has been no confirmation from the council.

Thaksin departed for Finland to begin a foreign tour on September 9, loading up his government-assigned aircraft with 58 large suitcases and trunks, the official of the national carrier said.

The prime minister’s aircraft, named Thai Koofah, was then inexplicably left parked in Finland for more than a week as Thaksin continued on his trip on other transportation.

A second aircraft carrying 56 suitcases – an Airbus 340-600 – was sent from Bangkok to meet up with the prime minister just days before the coup, the Thai Airways official said.

Another official in the airline industry confirmed the second flight, saying it left on September 17 – two days before the military toppled Thaksin in a bloodless coup.

It was unclear why Thaksin needed a second aircraft when his own plane was already assigned to fly him to Europe and the US.

Speculation has surfaced about whether Thaksin knew of the coup in advance and moved some of his vast assets out of the country.

Air force spokesman Capt Pongsak Semachai said the Thai Koofar aircraft arrived back in Thailand several days ago, but declined to give the exact date.

Thaksin’s family is among the wealthiest in Thailand, and in 2004 the American magazine Forbes ranked Thaksin as the 16th richest man in Southeast Asia.

In January, the then-prime minister sold the centrepiece of his empire - telecoms giant Shin Corp. – to Singapore’s state investment company, Temasek Holdings, for a tax-free 73.3 billion baht (£1 billion).

The head of the country’s central bank, Pridiyathorn Devakul, has said the proceeds from the sale were probably still in Thailand.

“I estimate that no large amount of Thai baht has been converted into overseas currencies. However, I don’t know whether the money could have been packed in suitcases and taken abroad,” he said last week.

Thaksin and one of his children have stayed in London since the coup, while his wife and two other children remain in Thailand.