Prayut tells feuding pair to keep mum

Prayut tells feuding pair to keep mum

Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya says he has a direct order from Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to say nothing about the Rajabhakti Park scandal, and that applies to Park founder and ex-army chief Gen Udomdej Sitabutr. (Photo by Seksan Rojjanametakun)
Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya says he has a direct order from Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to say nothing about the Rajabhakti Park scandal, and that applies to Park founder and ex-army chief Gen Udomdej Sitabutr. (Photo by Seksan Rojjanametakun)

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered Deputy Defence Minister Udomdej Sitabutr and Justice Minister Paiboon Koomchaya to refrain from commenting on the Rajabhakti Park scandal after the pair tussled over the issue.

"The prime minister told me not to speak [about the scandal] any more and focus on taking action," Gen Paiboon said Tuesday. Gen Paiboon and Gen Udomdej have appeared at odds with both making conflicting comments about the scandal.

Gen Paiboon conceded last Wednesday there was corruption in construction of the park and he would find the wrongdoers. He made the remark after meeting two core red-shirt leaders -- Nattawut Saikuar and Jatuporn Prompan -- who supplied information about irregularities in the project.

This prompted Gen Udomdej to respond, warning Gen Paiboon to refrain from making any comment which could mislead the public.

Gen Paiboon, however, insisted he did take responsibility for his comments, adding those media outlets accusing him of not sticking to his remarks had better transcribe the recorded interviews to see for themselves what he actually said.

He accused the media of incorrectly linking what he had said to past issues, saying he would not take responsibility for the media's misquotes. 

Asked if he had spoken to Gen Udomdej lately, Gen Paiboon didn't answer and simply walked away.

Gen Udomdej also declined to comment on the scandal when asked by the media while he was attending Tuesday's cabinet meeting.

He said he had no plans to address the media about the park's construction and the spending of donations.

He was responding to calls by the red-shirt United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship for more details. Gen Udomdej said it would be better to wait for results from the Defence Ministry panel probing the scandal.

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