City Hall has denied allegations it has intimidated vendors at Khlong Thom Market in Bangkok's Chinatown to get them to relocate their stalls.
Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) adviser Vichai Sangprapai yesterday said officials did not threaten vendors as had been alleged, but it will take legal action against those who do not comply with this Saturday's deadline to move out.
Vichai: Ready to take legal action
The deadline had been extended from Dec 27 last year.
He was speaking after a crowd gathered in front of City Hall demanding the BMA apologise for alleged intimidation.
Tossaporn Neamkantha, 20, a vendor at the market, claimed he and his family members had been threatened by plainclothes officers, who came to his house in Lat Phrao Soi 101, asking them to relocate his stall.
A group of 200 vendors from Khlong Thom, led by Thamthip Chongcharoenkittikul, gathered at Lan Khon Muang in front of City Hall offices on Din So Road yesterday morning, calling on Bangkok governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra and City Hall executives to apologise to them.
Ms Thamthip also claimed City Hall officials have accused them of acting like mafia gangs, extorting money from other vendors at the market. Officials have also accused them of defying City Hall's order to relocate their stalls, she added.
Last year, City Hall launched its campaign to reclaim the pavements and roads at Khlong Thom Market for pedestrians and motorists, pressuring vendors to relocate their stalls to the old Southern Bus Terminal, Tha Din Daeng Market, Chatuchak 2 market and Soho Shopping mall.
Pol Maj Gen Vichai said residents living nearby the market area had complained about traffic congestion in their communities.