Digital clocks bought for 14.8 million baht have been removed from the walls of the parliament because they regularly malfunction, a source said.
The 240 clocks were unplugged on Saturday afternoon and removed for repairs by staff of Equip Man Co, which earlier sold them to the Secretariat of the House of Representatives.
The secretariat later saw its image plunge after acquiring the clocks, which were earlier admired for their "accuracy and satellite-linked technology".
"These clocks haven't functioned properly since the middle of last year," said the parliamentary source, who asked not to be named.
It is not the first time the clocks, attached inside and outside the parliament building, have malfunctioned since the office decided to replace its wall-mounted analogue clocks in 2013.
In August of that year, their operating system failed, the source said. "All the timepieces were removed this time to avoid further damaging the secretariat's image."
The office was in hot water after the clock procurement was found by the Office of the Auditor-General to lack transparency. In July 2014, the National Council for Peace and Order, which scrutinised state budget spending, carried out a probe into the matter.
The findings led to charges brought by police against 11 parliamentary officials who were accused of dereliction of duty in connection with their roles in procuring the overpriced clocks. Among them was Suwichak Nakwatcharachai, former secretary-general of the House of Representatives. The office decided to impose a "light" punishment on the officials, the source said.
The irregularity came under the media spotlight after former Rak Thai Party leader Chuvit Kamolvisit criticised the clock purchase on his Facebook in 2013. Then secretariat spokesman, Nukun Santhitiseri, said the deal also covered other computerised equipment.