Yingluck Shinawatra and jail time

[S Landreth]

Paiboon seeking way to speed up rice cases

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/poli...-30296897.html

_________

Ministry calls meet on rice scheme suspects - 853 cases to be probed separately

The Justice Ministry has invited anti-graft agencies to a meeting next week when it is expected to name the people to be probed in the 853 alleged corruption cases connected to the rice-pledging scheme.

The Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) last week said it had received 853 complaints of malfeasance mainly against officials at the Marketing Organisation for Farmers, the Public Warehouse Organisation and the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives.

Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya said Tuesday that the ministry has called anti-graft agencies to a meeting next week for an overview of the already concluded investigations targeting high-level policy-makers in charge of the rice programme.

The meeting will also point out the officials implicated by the complaints who will be sought for prosecution.

The agencies attending the meeting will include the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), the PACC, the Office of the Auditor-General and the Department of Special Investigation.

The Finance, Commerce and PM's Office ministries which handled the probes into top policy-makers from the previous government involved in the rice pledging programme will also join the session to provide a background on the investigations they carried out.

The meeting is expected to bring forth information that will be useful for prosecutors in proceeding with the cases.

Probes into the 853 cases will be conducted promptly and quickly, said Gen Paiboon, who also chairs the Centre for National Anti-Corruption (CNAC).

Also Tuesday, the CNAC said it has considered recommending the PACC set up sub-committees to probe the 853 alleged rice-pledging corruption cases, according to Prayong Preeyachitt, the PACC secretary-general.

Mr Prayong was speaking in his capacity as secretary to the CNAC.

In response to the cabinet resolution to assign CNAC to carry out probes against the state officials allegedly involved with the rice-pledging scandal, he said the CNAC would recommend that the PACC form sub-panels to probe each case.

Once they are formed, the sub-committees will be required to complete their tasks within six months, he said.

On Oct 1, the PACC Region 9 informed Mr Prayong of irregularities found in a pledged rice storage facility in tambon Tha Chang of Songkhla's Bang Klam district.

The PACC Region 9 said a contract was made with the PWO to house rice stock, despite the fact the contractor did not own any warehouses.

The contractor leased a warehouse to store the grain, collecting 500,000 baht every month.

The practice was a breach of regulations and prompted a local investigation into members of a provincial panel responsible for selecting storage facilities for rice.

The probe looked into why the contract had been granted and whether the firms chosen to fumigate the stock had used good quality chemicals.

The investigation also looked at related documents that need to be examined to find individuals or agencies that could be held accountable, according to the PACC.

Mr Prayong played down concerns raised over the likelihood that having the 853 cases probed separately would result in a delay in the progress of the investigations.

He said the information related to the alleged irregularities in the rice pledging scheme is now available since both ministries had finished their investigations into civil liabilities against alleged wrongdoers.

The civil liabilities probe ruled that former commerce minister Boonsong Teriyapirom and five others, mostly senior government officers, must pay a total of 20 billion baht in compensation for allegedly supporting a bogus G-to-G rice sales benefiting some local traders under the Yingluck Shinawatra administration.

The commerce minister has signed an order demanding the compensation.

Also, the Finance Ministry is waiting for Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's decision on whether he would himself sign or co-sign an administrative order seeking 35.7 billion baht in compensation from former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra over her loss-ridden rice-pledging scheme, or authorise someone else to do so.

Gen Prayut had earlier hinted he would give the authority to sign the document to the Finance Ministry since they were involved in the probe panel.

Ms Yingluck was accused of turning a blind eye as prime minister to the alleged irregularities in the rice scheme.

He added all of the accused were entitled to appeal their cases in the Administrative Court.

The premier said the cases, with the appeals process factored in, would be concluded in two years.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/poli...cheme-suspects

[S Landreth]

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/yin...atment-prayut/

[Texpat]

ยังไม่ติดคุก?

To borrow a reference from Hamlet's The Mousetrap, Yingluck is the cheesy bait on the trap for Thaksin. The stupid Dems and the junta can't remember that Thai's don't care for cheese.
She'll never go to jail.

[Boon Mee]

ยังไม่ติดคุก?

To borrow a reference from Hamlet's The Mousetrap, Yingluck is the cheesy bait on the trap for Thaksin. The stupid Dems and the junta can't remember that Thai's don't care for cheese.
She'll never go to jail.

What about Justice for the 19 or so poor rice farmers who killed themselves due to Yingluck's corruption?

[S Landreth]

Prayut urged to drop civil liability case against Yingluck

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/poli...-30297092.html

[Boon Mee]

Prayut urged to drop civil liability case against Yingluck
"Yingluck should not be held responsible for damages resulting from policy decisions. Note the court ruling in Rerngchai's case," the lawyer said.

No, of course not. Just like Crooked Hillary shouldn't be held responsible for her illegal bathroom server because the "Intent" wasn't to defraud.

Bull Shit...

[sabang]

ยังไม่ติดคุก?

To borrow a reference from Hamlet's The Mousetrap, Yingluck is the cheesy bait on the trap for Thaksin. The stupid Dems and the junta can't remember that Thai's don't care for cheese.
She'll never go to jail.

Hamlet's The Mousetrap? Obscure reference- although I have studied Hamlet.
Agatha Christie wrote The Mousetrap.

[Texpat]

Shakespeare's Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, staged a play called The Mousetrap, to try to determine if his evil uncle Claudius actually did kill Hamlet's father, the king, as the apparition at the beginning of the tragedy suggested. The play-within-a-play (Act 3 Scene 2) featured a scene of regicide and the idea is that Claudius' reaction would reveal his secret. It did.

Similarly, Yingluck is the being used as bait to get to her brother.

[S Landreth]

Yingluck appeals for justice in rice compensation demand

Former prime minister Ms Yingluck Shinawatra appealed again for justice from the military junta over the imposition of a huge 35 billion baht compensation on her for the damages which her rice-pledging scheme has inflicted on the state.

She repeated her call for justice as she arrived at the Supreme Court this morning to attend the fourth hearing of the trial which she was indicted by the National Anti-Corruption Commission of dereliction of duties over the implementation of her rice scheme.

She was welcomed on arrival at the court by leading members of the Pheu Thai party, and supporters with flowers.

Before the trial began at 9.30 am, she repeated her call for sympathy over the military junta exercising power under Section 44 of the interim constitution to issue an administrative order to rush her alleged corruption cases and impose her with hefty fines for the rice scheme.

She said the prime minister should follow the Supreme Court which set a norm for persons who perform duties at policy level, citing the case of the former central governor who was cleared of the compensation payment.

She said she should be given the same practice by allowing her case to go to the Civil Court.

Ms Yingluck was ordered to pay 20% of damages caused to the state by two rice schemes for the pledging of the 2012/2013 rice crop, and 2013-2014 rice crop.

Total damages from the two schemes amounted to 178 billion baht.

She was held responsible for 20% of the damages or 35 billion baht.

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/yin...sation-demand/

[S Landreth]

Yingluck urges govt to drop administrative order for damages

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/poli...-30297168.html

[S Landreth]

Lawyer urges PM to send Yingluck case to Civil Court

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha should forward a case seeking compensation from former premier Yingluck Shinawatra for damages caused by her government's rice-pledging scheme to the Civil Court, says her lawyer.

Noppadon Laothong cited the case of former central bank governor Rerngchai Marakanond, who has been cleared by the Supreme Court in a decade-long battle involving the loss of 186 billion baht just before the 1997 economic crisis.

Mr Noppadon, who also represented Mr Rerngchai in his case, said the government at the time filed a civil suit against Mr Rerngchai.

He argued the current government failed to offer Ms Yingluck a chance to seek justice by issuing an administrative order seeking 35.7 billion baht in compensation from her instead of taking the case to the Civil Court as in Mr Rergnchai's case.

The prime minister's invocation of Section 44 under the interim charter to authorise the Legal Execution Department to seize her assets is also unfair, he said.

In Ms Rerngchai's case, the Supreme Court ruled Mr Rerngchai had to make decisions as a policy-maker and any resulting loss of money should not be considered liability or damage.

Ms Yingluck, who oversaw a national policy to help farmers via her rice-pledging scheme as prime minister, should be treated in the same manner, Mr Noppadon said.

In light of this, Gen Prayut should review Ms Yingluck's case, he said.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the Appeal Court's ruling to clear Mr Rerngchai of civil penalties, ending his 11-year battle for justice.

After the currency crisis which caused the baht to depreciate by almost 100% from 25 baht per US dollar to 48 baht, Mr Rerngchai was the sole central bank official to be taken to court for severe negligence under the 1996 Tort Liability Act for using national reserves to defend the currency which resulted in a loss of more than 186 billion baht.

Mr Rerngchai had been fined the record amount in June 2005 by the Civil Court for his role in approving currency transactions by the Bank of Thailand during his term as governor in the months leading up to the 1997 economic crisis.

The Appeal Court in 2010 overturned the lower court ruling that imposed the penalty on Mr Rerngchai, arguing the swap transactions were made as part of a collaborative decision among economic policy-makers.

The Supreme Court ruled Mr Rerngchai was not guilty of recklessness resulting in the damage and upheld the Appeal Court's ruling acquitting him in the case, Thanakorn Waekwaree, Mr Rerngchai's representative, said after the ruling.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/poli...to-civil-court

[S Landreth]

State speeds checks on contaminated rice 39,000 tonnes of grain under scrutiny

The Commerce Ministry is speeding up inspections of glutinous rice stocks in Chai Nat province which were found to be contaminated as it prepares to take legal action against those responsible.

Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said authorities were inspecting 39,000 tonnes of glutinous rice at a private warehouse in the central province following a complaint by Sing Tak Group, a rice buyer.

During the hand-over, the grains were found to be contaminated with white rice and rotten grains, prompting a thorough inspection of the entire stock at the warehouse owned by Supreme Rice Agency Co.

About 201,266 rice sacks have been sorted and 178,185 sacks were contaminated, she said, adding the rice was from the 2013/2014 crop season.

Ms Apiradi said the Public Warehouse Organisation (PWO) has been working with Sing Tak to sort the remaining rice by the end of this month.

The company, which has lodged a petition with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, has agreed to accept the good grains, while contaminated rice will be sent to a warehouse in Suphan Buri, she said.

Meanwhile, military spokesman Winthai Suvaree on Sunday countered a Pheu Thai politician's claim that there were no "losses" in the rice-pledging scheme while insisting that alleged irregularities would be proved in court.

The spokesman was responding to a Facebook post by former Pheu Thai MP Chinanwat Haboonpad who defended the Yingluck administration's rice-pledging scheme.

According to the Pheu Thai politician, the rice-pledging scheme was initiated to help farmers whose productivity contributed to the country's economy and no "losses" could be incurred because not all state projects were for profit.

Col Winthai said that "losses" in the rice-pledging scheme were not about money paid to the rice farmers, but were unanticipated costs.

"These costs included storage and maintenance [of stockpiles] and leaks through fraudulent practices. They involved large sums of money and could be bigger than the sums paid to the farmers," he said.

He said he believes the public does not question the merit of the subsidy programme for rice farmers, but they want to make sure no one exploits it for personal gain.

He said alleged irregularities in the rice subsidy scheme were raised before the National Council for Peace and Order staged the May, 2014 coup.

"The alleged irregularities are evident, not based on feelings or prejudice. It is not played up to arouse public sentiment or discredit others."

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/poli...taminated-rice

[S Landreth]

Yingluck targeted with Bt36-bn asset seizure order

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/poli...-30297270.html

[MrBlobby]

Looks like the Supreme Court have backed the puppet dictator back into a corner here.

Wonder who is backing up the Supreme Court.

Hmmm

[S Landreth]

Yingluck's rice compensation order signed

Deputy Finance Minister Wisudhi Srisuphan and finance permanent secretary Somchai Sujjapongse have signed an administrative order seeking 35.7 billion baht in compensation from former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra over her alleged dereliction of duty in the loss-ridden rice-pledging scheme.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has given Mr Wisudhi the authority to sign the order on his behalf, while Mr Somchai signed it at the behest of Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong, who is visiting the US and Peru for meetings, said an informed source at the Finance Ministry.

The administrative order is expected to be submitted to Ms Yingluck within the next few weeks. She can appeal the order if she disagrees with it, the source said.

A panel formed to determine the compensation, chaired by Comptroller-General's Department director-general Manas Jamveha, recently ruled that the former premier must pay 35.7 billion baht for her role in a scheme that led to huge losses from the 2012-13 and 2013-14 crops.

The panel did not find Ms Yingluck responsible for losses in 2011-12, as the National Anti-Corruption Commission and the Office of the Auditor-General of Thailand had not informed her about the alleged corruption at that time.

The two rice crops during 2012-14 incurred losses of 178 billion baht and Ms Yingluck is held liable to 20% of the loss, while the government will seek others to pay for the remaining 80%.

Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya is in charge of finding others who are responsible for the loss.

Previously, Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn had been authorised to sign an administrative order on Gen Prayut's behalf to demand 20 billion baht in compensation from former commerce minister Boonsong Teriyapirom and five others for their involvement in fraudulent government-to-government rice sales.

Ms Apiradi authorised commerce permanent secretary Chutima Bunyapraphasara to sign on her behalf.

Of the 20 billion baht in compensation, Mr Boonsong must pay 1.77 billion baht and his then-deputy Poom Sarapol must pay 2.3 billion baht. The four others are required to pay 4 billion baht each.

The Yingluck government launched the rice-pledging scheme in October 2011 to fulfil a Pheu Thai Party election promise to farmers who are the party's voting base.

The pledging price was set at 40-50% higher than the market price in hopes that hoarding rice in massive stockpiles would push up prices, but the scheme backfired.

A subcommittee analysing the rice subsidy schemes' accounting found that 15 such schemes run by prior governments recorded a loss of almost 700 billion baht, of which 537 billion was incurred during the Yingluck government's four crops.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/poli...n-order-signed