Thaworn's role irks Sohpon

Tranport Minister Sohpon Zarum said on Thursday he disagreed with Deputy Interior Minister Thaworn Senniam's mediation of talks between representatives of the Hat Yai rail union and State Railway of Thailand management on Wednesday.

Mr Sohpon said some commitments might have been made during the talks without his consent and they could be raised by the union in future talks.

The transport minister said this to the House committee on transport, which invited him to explain the plan to rehabilitate and restructure the SRT. Mr Sohpon was accompanied by Suphan Loboonlert, chief of the SRT's Division of Business Development Projects.

Mr Sohpon said he had set up four committees to investigate the rail dispute and expected to get their reports in three weeks.

"Today the entire rail system needs an overhaul.  If talks are held only to satisfy the two sides in dispute then  problems will continue to exist. This could affect the SRT's revenues and scare investors away," he said.

The minister said the planned SRT restructuring was not designed to privatise the agency, but to do away with its accumulated debt of more than 80 billion baht.

Mr Sohpon is a member of Bumjaithai Party while Mr Thaworn is a Democrat.