Means digit lottery case will also now be delayed
POST REPORTERS
The Supreme Court yesterday sought help from the Constitution Court to decide the fate of the Assets Scrutiny Committee (ASC), which was set up to investigate and prosecute alleged corruption by the Thaksin Shinawatra government when it was in power.
The move came after 17 defendants sitting on the Government Lottery Office (GLO) board questioned the legal status of the ASC and asked the Supreme Court's Crime Division for Holders of Political Positions to clarify the matter.
The basis of their argument is that the extension of the inquiry panel's term for another nine months to the end of next month could be in violation of the constitution.
The extension of the panel's term was made when the new charter was already in place. The charter paves the way for the setting up of independent bodies such as the National Counter Corruption Commission and so the ASC should not exist, they said.
The original term was one year, which expired on Sept 30 last year.
The move also came the day the Supreme Court was supposed to decide whether it would accept or reject the digit lottery case involving 47 cabinet members, including Mr Thaksin, and the 17 GLO board defendants.
The court's decision meant that a final ruling will be deferred until the Constitution Court makes clear the status of the ASC set up by the coup-makers shortly after they ousted Mr Thaksin's government in September 2006.
The ASC earlier found that the Thaksin government had introduced the digit lottery without proper legislation between 2003 and 2006. It demanded the defendants return 14.8 billion baht worth of funds that the GLO had raised from the digit lottery and already spent.
After hearing the defendants' argument, the Supreme Court judicial panel handling the lottery case, led by deputy court president Roongroj Ruenrengwong, decided to let the Constitution Court rule on the legitimacy of the ASC.
The decision by the Supreme Court surprised legal experts.
Preecha Suwannathat, law faculty rector of Walailak University, believed the defendants were trying to delay their trial in the Supreme Court. If ASC is found unconstitutional, it could affect all corruption cases that the ASC is handling against the Thaksin government.
Parinya Thewanaruemitkul, a law lecturer at Thammasat university, said the Supreme Court normally had the power to rule about legal points of doubt, but the decision showed it did not want to do that.
ASC secretary Kaewsan Atipho said normally a request of this nature for a Constitution Court ruling would be made only after another court had accepted a lawsuit for trial. But in this case the Supreme Court had not yet accepted the lottery case for trial.
ASC spokesman Sak Korsaengruang said his panel respected the Supreme Court's decision and would wait for the ruling of the Constitution Court.
In another development, the ASC decided to ask the Attorney-General to file a lawsuit with the Supreme Court against Mr Thaksin, former transport minister Suriya Jungrunreangkit, the former board directors of the now defunct New Bangkok International Airport Co and Airports of Thailand, and the contractors involved in the procurement of 6.9-billion-baht conveyor belts plus CTX luggage scanners for Suvarnabhumi airport three years ago. The ASC found they had committed wrongdoing as the procurement price was allegedly inflated by 1.7 billion baht.
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