The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has threatened to launch a police complaint against anyone who removes sandbags stuffed in Srinakarin Road's sewerage system, as they are part of City Hall's flood prevention measures.

Pheu Thai Party spokesman Prompong Nopparit and his deputy Jirayu Huangsap help lift sandbags from a sewer on Srinakarin Road yesterday as part of their inspection of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration’s controversial dredging work. KOSOL NAKACHOL

BMA spokesman Wasan Meewong said yesterday the sandbags would prevent the water from Hua Mak canal from flowing into the sewers, which could subsequently flood Srinakarin Road.

City Hall's legal team and the Drainage and Sewerage Department would ask police to take legal action against anyone who removed the sandbags, Mr Wasan said.

Removing them is a violation of the BMA's flood prevention work, the spokesman said, adding that offenders would be held accountable if the floods hit the area. Mr Wasan spoke after the Pheu Thai Party's spokesman Prompong Nopparit and his deputy Jirayu Huangsap inspected the Srinakarin Road sewerage system yesterday.

During the inspection, three sandbags were found in a sewer next to a restaurant.

Thanyaburi prison chief Adul Jittakhet said about 200 sandbags were found in the sewerage system between Lam Sali and Krungthep Kritha intersection after 50 inmates were sent to clean the sewer on Sept 22.

Mr Prompong said he had received several complaints about sandbags being dumped in the sewers and he suspected some irregularities in the City Hall's sewer dredging project. The government has allocated more than 100 million baht for the BMA to undertake the work.

Mr Prompong said he would ask the House anti-corruption committee to look into the complaints.

Meanwhile, the Democrat Party questioned why the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) was so quick to investigate cases related to the opposition.

Democrat deputy spokesman Sakonthee Pattiyakul said DSI chief Tarit Pengdith appeared eager to accept the ruling Pheu Thai Party's complaints about City Hall's drainage tunnel project and dredging work.

He said the DSI had no jurisdiction to probe cases linked to the Bangkok governor as he was a politician. Such probes should instead be conducted by the National Anti-Corruption Commission.