Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin has ordered a detailed probe into a 1.188-billion-baht prison project in Nakhon Nayok, following a complaint about alleged irregularities.
Thanakrit Chit-arirat, the minister's secretary, was assigned to look into the issue after a company questioned a Corrections Department plan to build four new prisons, including one in Nakhon Nayok's Ongkharak district, according to a Justice Ministry source.
The department held an e-auction for the jail project in Nakhon Nayok on May 24 and announced the bidding result three days later.
The winning bidder won the competition by offering to build the facility for 1.188 billion baht, slightly lower than the median price of 1.189 billion.
However, the source said, the company complained the terms of reference (ToR) for security systems in the four construction projects might have been written to benefit certain other bidders.
The accusation prompted Mr Thanakrit to ask the justice permanent secretary, Wisit Wisitsora-at, to explain how the ToR and the bidding were arranged.
Mr Thanakrit also demanded details on the specifications of a security camera system, which the winning firm questioned.
"If the alleged irregularities are proven, the project may be halted in order to call a new round of bidding," the source said.
The new prison in Nakhon Nayok earlier hit trouble when the original earmarked site in Khao Mai Phluang in Muang district was found to sit on forest land.
Former Nakhon Nayok governor Ratthaphong Sirichana later won approval from Mr Somsak and Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam, who oversees justice matters, to change the location.
The new construction site is situated on 120 rai of land in Ban Thung Klong 2 in Ongkharak district, which is situated near the Provincial Court in Nakhon Nayok.