Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam has downplayed growing worries over a "conflict of interests" that may put Sontaya Kunplome in trouble if the new military-appointed Pattaya mayor has to act against his father, Somchai, in a land scandal in the beach resort city.
Sontaya: Appointment as mayor takes flak
Mr Wissanu yesterday said that Mr Sontaya, also chief of the Chon Buri-based Phalang Chon Party, is unlikely to have to handle the Khao Mai Kaew land issue because legal action has already been started by the Legal Execution Department and former Pattaya mayor, Itthipol Kunplome, Mr Sontaya's brother.
The debate over Mr Sontaya's role in the Khao Mai Kaew case was sparked after Veera Somkwamkid, secretary-general of the People's Network Against Corruption, questioned whether he will have the "courage" to deal with the case, in which his father Somchai, who is commonly known as Kamnan Poh, was ordered to pay over 100 million baht in compensation to the Pattaya municipality.
Somchai was found guilty in 2005 of engineering the transformation of a forest reserve in tambon Khao Mai Kaew of Chon Buri into a private land plot that was sold to Pattaya City for 93 million baht to be used as a landfill site. He was the mayor of tambon Saensuk in Chon Buri at the time.
In executing the ruling, Mr Wissanu said, Mr Itthipol, while serving as the mayor, led legal execution officials to "seize" 40 rai of land and parts of it has been being sold to compensate for damages caused by Somchai.
It is estimated the land exceeds the value of the compensation demanded by the court, the deputy prime minister said.
The sale is under way, so Mr Sontaya is not required to take any action -- "at least at this moment", Mr Wissanu said.
However, if the amount falls short of the target, it is the Pattaya municipality's duty to solve the problem, he said.
National Council for Peace and Order chief and Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha screened Mr Sontaya's qualifications before exercising Section 44 of the interim charter to have him replace his predecessor Pol Maj Gen Anan Chaloenchasi, said Mr Wissanu.
There are no irregularities in the order, which was issued on Tuesday, but if the Pattaya mayor does not perform well, "the NCPO can dismiss him", Mr Wissanu said.
It is still unclear whether and to what extent Mr Sontaya will have to deal with the Khao Mai Kaew scandal after a source at the Legal Execution Department said it has not yet started "probing the assets" which will be used for compensation.
The Pattaya municipality has 10 years to work with the department under this procedure, but "four years have passed without an official request for the department to begin the process", the source said.
A former tourism and sports minister, Mr Sontaya, 55, has been given a key role by Gen Prayut to help run the flagship Eastern Economic Corridor scheme, which promotes high-tech products and services in the region.
However, his appointment has been criticised for being politically motivated, with Mr Veera criticising the removal of Pol Maj Gen Anan who he said had done nothing wrong during his time in office.