Reinstated National Security Council chief Thawil Pliensri said on Monday that "armed men" and weapons smuggling will be his first targets when he resumes his former post as head of the NSC.
Reinstated National Security Council chief Thawil Pliensri says he will target 'armed men' and arms smuggling when he returns to office. (Photo by Pattanapong Hirunard)
It was Mr Thawil's first statement on how he will lead the security agency since the caretaker cabinet on March 25 revoked a Sept 7, 2011 Prime Minister's Office order which transferred him from the position of NSC secretary-general to the post of adviser to the prime minister. The decision followed a court order.
''Weapons and unknown armed men will be the two issues I will pay serious attention to,'' he said in an interview with FM101 radio station.
Mr Thawil is awaiting final approval from the Election Commission on the cabinet's decision on March 25. As a caretaker government, decisions must be approved by EC and then be sent for royal endorsement.
He said the two issues were closely linked and they had political connections.
Weapons were smuggled from border areas, but authorities had turned a blind eye to the activities of the smugglers, he said, but stopped short of saying which neighbouring countries he was talking about or giving other details.
Although the NSC is not a policy-making agency, he said, it could help implement policy by making sure authorities follow the guidelines set down.
''NSC officials cannot go out and arrest anybody, but we can make sure that policy will be seriously implemented by authorities on the ground,'' he said.
''The problem is the authorities have become part of the conflicting parties, instead of staying neutral. But I still believe that there are many officials who work professionally out there,'' he said.
The NSC chief said five pipebombs, six gas cylinders, a five litre container of fuel and two motorcycles found at a house in Min Buri district on Sunday by police underlined the political threat deriving from the current standoff and tensions.
However, he did not expect violent clashes between the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) and the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) during the red-shirts' planned major rally on Saturday against the anti-government movement.
The huge turnout of anti-goverment protesters last Saturday had sent a strong message to the caretaker government and the red-shirts that they had no intention to back down from their demand for reform before an election, he added.
PDRC leaders across the country plan talks on Saturday to accelerate measures to unseat caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
''Although there will be no confrontation, threats and intimidation certainly continue and independent organisations and courts have been the main targets,'' Mr Thawil said.
The Constitutional Court nullified the Feb 2 general election last week and the National Anti-Corruption Commission has charged Ms Yingluck with negligence of duty in failing to prevent corruption in the rice-pledging scheme.
Mr Thawil won a court fight with the Yingluck government capped by the Supreme Administrative Court's ruling on March 7 that his removal from the position of NSC secretary-general by Ms Yingluck and her cabinet was unlawful.