SANTIKA
Fire inquiry looks into possibility of bribes
- Published: 7/01/2009 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: News
The Justice Ministry is investigating whether local police were bribed to allow the Santika pub to operate without a licence for so long.
Kittipong Kittayarak, permanent secretary for justice, said yesterday Justice Minister Pirapan Salirathavibhaga has set up a special committee to smooth the payment of reasonable compensation for the victims of the Jan 1 pub fire and to investigate if local police had accepted bribes from the Santika pub owner.
The panel will streamline procedures for the arrangement of compensation for the victims and relatives of the dead victims.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) and the Anti-Money Laundering Office will be asked to assist in the investigation.
Tharit Pengdit, secretary-general of the NACC, said officials would check if kickbacks had been paid to any officials to let Santika operate so smoothly for so long without a licence.
The panel also needs to find out if the building met the requirements of the building control law, said Mr Tharit, deputy head of the Justice Ministry special investigating committee.
It was earlier reported the owner of the Santika pub had sought an operating licence from police back in 2004, but it was refused.
Deputy national police chief Pol Gen Jongrak Chuthanont said the licence request was turned down because the building of the pub had not been completed at the time.
However, the Administrative Court stated later that police had delayed issuing the licence unfairly and the pub owner had the right to seek the licence even with just a blueprint of the building in hand.
City Clerk Pongsak Semsant said the investigation is also focusing on whether the structure of the Santika pub had been modified and more floors added illegally.
He admitted the task would be difficult because most of the evidence seems to have been destroyed.
The pub blaze left 64 people dead and 68 injured.
Special effects that included the shooting of confetti on the stage were initially suspected of being the cause of the fire, as this could have hit the sparklers held by customers.
Pol Col Kachornsak Pansakhon, deputy chief of Bangkok Police sub-division 5, said it had yet to be concluded whether this was the real cause.
The officer said Suriya Ritrabue, the 31-year-old managing director of White & Brothers (2003) Co, operator of the pub, had still not shown up for questioning.
Police have issued a second summons for him to turn up this Friday. If the request again goes unheeded, police will seek an arrest warrant for him, Pol Col Kachornsak said.
Det-udom Krairit, president of the Lawyers Council of Thailand, said yesterday his council would file lawsuits on behalf of those victims of the fire without financial resources or their relatives to seek the payment of compensation.
