The Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday said it had yet to receive a statement from Deputy Prime Minister Pongthep Thepkanchana who has been assigned by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to explain the return of an ordinary Thai passport to her fugitive brother Thaksin.
In March, Ms Yingluck wrote to the Ombudsman Office asking for another 30 days to clarify the issue after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs insisted it would not review its decision to issue the passport to Thaksin as suggested by the agency.
Ombudsman Office deputy secretary-general and spokesman Raksagecha Chaechai said the prime minister, in a letter, noted she had assigned Mr Pongthep to explain the matter on her behalf.
The 30-day deadline ended on April 15 but the office had yet to hear any explanation from Mr Pongthep, he said.
“The Ombudsman Office is due to report the issue at a meeting of ombudsmen on May 28 when they will consider how to proceed with it,” Mr Raksagecha said.
“The Ombudsman Office can write to Mr Pongthep to tell him to explain the passport decision within 15 days. If he fails to do so, the ombudsmen can report to the House of Representatives to acknowledge [the refusal] and announce it to the general public.”