Govt House security breached twice in three days

Govt House security breached twice in three days

Pol Col Kiat Kabbua points out a stall in the women's washroom at Government House, where a female staff member saw a man emerging on Friday. (Photo by Thiti Wannamontha)
Pol Col Kiat Kabbua points out a stall in the women's washroom at Government House, where a female staff member saw a man emerging on Friday. (Photo by Thiti Wannamontha)

Government House is supposed to be one of the hardest places in the country for outsiders to slip into, but two incidents in three days have shown that there's room for improvement on the security front.

An official working in the Prime Minister's Office alerted police on Friday after she saw a man emerging from the stall next to the one she was using in the women's washroom on the ground floor of the Banchakarn 1 Building in the compound of Government House.

She said she opened the door and encountered the man before he quickly fled the room. The man was in his 20s and did not have a badge or a pass, she said.

The woman and reporters who cover Government House joined police to search for the man but he was nowhere to be seen. Police believe he may have left the compound via Gate 9 to the Phadung Krungkasem canal, where a temporary floating market is located.

Government House has numerous closed-circuit TV cameras but none of them is directed at that partticular spot near Gate 9.

The Banchakarn 1 building is the workplace for deputy prime ministers and the PM's Office minister among others.

Friday's incident was the second sighting in three days of a stranger in the compound used by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.

A video clip shows the moment when Sub Lt Somchai Artphuen, a retired officer, comes out of nowhere to see Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Wednesday.


On Wednesday, Sub Lt Somchai Artphuen, a retired soldier with the 21st Infantry Division, the Queen's Guard, came out of nowhere to meet Gen Prayut face to face in the hall of the Santri Maitree Building after the prime minister, surrounded by security authorities, finished his weekly exercises.

Sub Lt Somchai, who was dressed in an exercise outfit, caught Gen Prayut -- who served in the same army division -- and those around him off-guard.

The retired officer said he wanted to join the exercise session. He also said he was seeking help for a relative who had won an auction to supply clothing for a government agency but the agency refused to take delivery.

A record at the visitor centre of Government House showed Sub Lt Somchai and a woman exchanged their ID cards for passes by telling the staff that they wanted to see a relative working inside.

Following the incident in the women's washroom on Friday, Pol Col Kiat Kabbua, a Special Branch Bureau officer in charge of Government House security, checked the room for evidence.

He said the sign for the room was quite small and that in his rush to use a washroom, the man might not have noticed it was not a men's room.

But all security lapses would be fixed after talks with officials in charge of Government House, Pol Col Kiat said.

As Pol Col Kiat was talking to reporters, Wilas Aroonsri, the secretary-general to the prime minister, showed up to ask about what had happened.

After being briefed, Gen Wilas declined to comment and said only: "I was serious about this. That's why I came here to see it with my own eyes."

Do you like the content of this article?
COMMENT (2)