Between 200 and 300 teak logs worth more than 10 million baht have been found buried underground at the construction site of the new parliament in the Kiak Kai area of Bangkok's Dusit district, a source at the Finance Ministry revealed.
Teak logs worth more than 10 million baht were found at the new parliament construction site in Bangkok's Dusit district on Wednesday. (Photo by Wichit Chantanusornsiri)
Construction workers found the logs earlier this week after they began to demolish the first of about 40 buildings on the 112 rai plot to prepare for the 12.2 billion baht construction project.
The logs are mostly about six metres long and range from six to eight inches in diameter. They had been used in the foundations of the old buildings.
More are likely to be found as workers continue to demolish buildings, most of which belonged to military agencies and are more than 50 years old.
The source said there had been some attempts to remove the logs from the site and exploit them for personal gain. The Finance Ministry allows private contractors to auction off parts of demolished buildings to interested parties, but this does not extend to assets buried under structures.
Treasury Department deputy director-general Charnnut Kaewmanee said any private contractor hired to demolish an official building would be required to hand over assets found beneath it to the government.
He said the teak logs, which are in good condition, should be auctioned off to generate revenue for the state, or government agencies could seek permission from the ministry to use them for official purposes.
To ensure transparency, Mr Charnnut said the Treasury Department will form a committee to supervise all teak logs excavated from the site.