The top anti-graft agency is seeking legal amendments to more strictly punish local political office-holders found guilty of corruption, including a proposed lifelong ban from politics.
National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) secretary-general Sansern Poljeak said yesterday the body has received complaints that people found guilty of graft remain in office.
According to Thai law, authorities vested with the power to remove local political office-holders from their posts cannot do so if the person in question offers to resign first.
In Thailand, it is customary for those facing graft investigations to tender their resignations quickly to avoid the shame or stigma associated with being forcibly ousted.
This means they can seek re-election later.
But the NACC is seeking to amend the anti-corruption law so those who voluntarily step down under such circumstances lose their right to seek re-election later, Mr Sansern said.
The agency found sufficient grounds to lodge graft allegations against 409 local political office-holders from 1999 to 2015 with 262 coming from tambon administrative organisations, 114 from municipalities, 27 from provincial administration organisations and six from the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, he said.
Of the total, 171 resigned before the authorities had a chance to rule in favour of their removal, Mr Sansern added.
He said local political-office holders who take up new positions despite having resigned in the face of NACC recommendations against them will face further investigation.
In such cases, the agency will ask the cabinet to tell the Interior Ministry to order provincial governors or district chiefs to launch a probe and remove them from office, he said.
The probe findings will also be used to pursue further criminal and civil action against them, he said.
The NACC will send the findings to the Election Commission for consideration when determining the qualification requirements of local poll candidates.