A police panel investigating alleged irregularities in the Royal Thai Police Office's (RTPO) project to build 396 police stations nationwide has so far found no evidence of corruption, Pol Gen Jate Mongkolhatthi said.
Pol Gen Jate, an RTPO adviser who chairs the panel, said from a preliminary examination the investigators had so far found no evidence of irregularities in the project, unlike the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) which claimed it had sufficient evidence of corruption to treat it as a special case.
He said every step of implementing the project, starting from the drafting of the terms of reference (ToR) to the bidding for the construction of the police stations, had been properly examined and certified correct.
However, if the contractor, PCC Development and Construction Co, was found to have breached the contract or left the construction unfinished, a civil lawsuit must be filed to demand compensation for damage, Pol Gen Jate said.
Without evidence of corruption, it was not possible for the RTPO to file a complaint with the police or DSI.
Pol Gen Jate said his panel would try to complete the investigation as soon as possible.
Chuvit Kamolvasit, the Rak Thailand Party leader, on Thursday said in a press conference he had evidence to show that there was a mistake on the part of the police for approving the extension of the contract in August last year in favour of the contractor.
He called on Pol Gen Adul Saengsingkaew, the police chief, to show responsibility.
Mr Chuvit also accused DSI chief Tarit Pengdith of trying to distort the case to protect wrongdoers.