Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej turned against Commerce Minister Mingkwan Sangsuwan in the House censure debate, taking him to task for mishandling the government's rice policy.
SNACK BOX CASH
The Supreme Court yesterday asked police to charge three lawyers for former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra with trying to bribe court officials with a gift of a snack box containing two million baht. Mr Thaksin promptly issued a statement denying any involvement in the alleged offence.
SOUTHERN VIOLENCE
Train services to the deep South, suspended since June 21 after the brutal murders of four railway employees on a train in Narathiwat, will resume tomorrow, the State Railway of Thailand announced yesterday.
ANNUAL INCINERATION
AYUTTHAYA : Armed police commandos were deployed to secure the destruction of 15 tonnes of drugs worth over 10 billion baht yesterday. The drugs were incinerated to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, in Bang Pa-in Industrial Estate.
POLITICS
The Democrat party and a group of senators are separately asking the Constitution Court to nullify Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama's signing of the joint statement with Cambodia to back Phnom Penh's bid to have the Preah Vihear temple listed as a World Heritage site. The move comes as the Administrative Court yesterday started the process of deciding whether to accept the case forwarded by the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) to nullify the cabinet resolution on June 17 to endorse the map of the temple.
POLITICS
The Assets Scrutiny Committee (ASC) will seek the indictment of former social development minister Watana Muangsuk and former Thai Rak Thai MP Arisman Pongruangrong for their involvement in alleged corruption in the Baan Ua-arthorn low-cost housing projects. The ASC would forward the case to the Office of the Attorney-General for indictment before the committee's term expires on Monday.
POLITICS
The president of the Rice Exporters Association said yesterday he was not convinced by Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej's explanation why Thailand missed the opportunity to sell rice to the Philippines, calling his defence ''unacceptable''. ''The prime minister's defence doesn't make sense, and everybody in the rice industry is fully aware that what he said was not the truth,'' said Chookiat Ophaswongse.
POLITICS
Transport Minister Santi Promphat once cheated in a university exam and lacks the integrity to serve in the cabinet, says the opposition. During yesterday's House censure debate, Democrat MP Vinai Sompong said the transport minister was not qualified to hold the portfolio as he was expelled by Ramkhamhaeng University after being found to have cheated in an exam in 1999.
State enterprise board members should stand up against political intervention and fight unfair removal of officials by the government, to protect the national interest, Chuchai Suphawongse, who has been reinstated to the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation board, said yesterday. Dr Chuchai urged fellow state enterprise officials who fell victim to abuse of power by politicians to follow the GPO board's move by taking their cases to the Administrative Court.
KAENG KRACHARN FOREST COMPLEX
Thailand plans to apply for natural World Heritage status for the Kaeng Kracharn forest complex, which covers a pristine tropical forest area in Ratchaburi, Phetchaburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan provinces. Songtham Suksawang, director of the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department's national park research division, said the forest is worthy of World Heritage status due to its high ecological value.
CONSERVATION
A British conservation group has called on state wildlife agencies to look into alleged animal abuse and illegal tiger trafficking at a famous temple in Kanchanaburi province. A report by the group Care for the Wild International (CWI) claims the animals at the renowned ''Tiger Temple'' are kept in confined spaces and poorly cared for.
The French Ambassador to Thailand is Laurent Bili, not Alain Gavillet as given in yesterday's Thailand's Top Destinations Vote on the front page. Mr Bili voted for Nan, saying he had spent three weeks there as guest of a ''charming Thai family''.
ADMISSION CRITERIA
The Supreme Administrative Court has overruled a decision by the Administrative Court that rejected a lawsuit by students who asked that the results of the Ordinary National Education Test (O-Net), the grade point average (GPA) and the cumulative grade-point average (GPAX) scores be scrapped as criteria for university admission.
EDITORIAL
The court has proved that it can be done - a quick investigation to establish the truth and the guts to punish the law-breakers without fear or favour.
LET IT BE
When Cyclone Nargis hit Burma last month, I heard a passing comment by one of the news commentators on radio that quite disturbed me.
THAI POLITICS
The concerted movement to bring down the People Power party-led government of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej this week shifted its focus from street protests to a parliamentary censure debate.
Post Bag
Regarding the article by Nareerat Wiriyapong, "CP unit to expand bioplastics" (BP, Business, June 20), we wish to correct the following inaccuracies in the report:
In Media
The just-concluded no-confidence debate should enable Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej to boost his own image by removing cabinet ministers who are seen as inefficient.
LABOUR
Former Labour Department director-general Vichit Saengthong was arrested yesterday on a charge of collusion in arranging overseas jobs without permission and swindling workers seeking employment abroad.
ENVIRONMENT
PRACHUAP KHIRI KHAN : Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn said she is concerned over possible flooding in Hua Hin municipality and has asked about the development of royally-initiated flood relief and prevention schemes.
