Thirty Democrat list-MPs showed up at the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) yesterday to acknowledge charges relating to incorrect party donations.
Democrat list MPs are summoned to the Department of Special Investigation at the Government Complex on Chaeng Watthana Road yesterday to acknowledge the DSI’s charges relating to donations made to their party. They include Ong-art Klampaibul, front, and Korn Chatikavanij, left. THITI WANNAMONTHA
They deny breaking political laws and the party will file counter-suits against the DSI, Democrat lawyer Wirat Kalayasiri said.
The MPs are accused of violating Section 57 of the Political Party Act, which requires donations to parties of 20,000 baht and above to be made with a bill of exchange or a cheque signed by the donor. The MPs are accused of making the donations via deductions from their salaries.
Mr Wirat brought the MPs to the DSI at the Government Complex on Chaeng Watthana Road in Bangkok on a bus.
He said Democrat leader Abhisit Vejjajiva wrote to parliament secretary-general Pitton Poomhiran, asking him to deduct donations from the MPs' salaries and issue a single cheque for the total amount.
The Democrat Party reports the donations and sends receipts to parliament every month, Mr Wirat said.
The party has also reported its financial statements to the Election Commission every year from 2007 to 2012.
Mr Wirat said the EC has never expressed any reservations about the practice, nor demanded any change.
He said that as the MPs were now being probed by the DSI despite the EC's stance, he believes the case is politically motivated.
Mr Wirat told the Democrat MPs they had the right not to sign their names to acknowledge the charges and to request audio and visual recordings be prohibited during the charging process.
The MPs admitted making donations via salary deductions, but deny violating the Political Party Act because they do not think they are in breach of the law.
If they are found guilty, the parliament secretary-general and the EC must also be charged with dereliction of duty, Mr Wirat said.
Mr Wirat added that the Democrat Party will file civil and criminal counter suits against the DSI.
The DSI's Bureau of Special Crime 1 director Pol Col Niran Adulyasak, who handles the case, denied the charges are politically motivated, but conceded the alleged offences were trivial.
He said the DSI had to act because it had received a complaint from former senator Ruangkrai Leekitwattana and the accused MPs had not made their donations in the correct manner.
Although all 30 of the accused Democrats showed up at the DSI yesterday, Pol Col Niran questioned only six of them as representatives.
The six were Kanok Wongtra-ngan, Korn Chatikavanij, Kiat Sittheeamorn, Kasit Piromya, Khunying Kalaya Sophonpanich and Kowit Tarana.
Pol Col Niran rejected a request for him to combine their cases, saying the remaining 24 MPs would still be questioned at a later time, according to the DSI's summonses.