Thamanat sets up war room to 'gather evidence' for lawsuits

Thamanat sets up war room to 'gather evidence' for lawsuits

Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Thamanat Prompow
Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Thamanat Prompow

Embattled Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Thamanat Prompow has set up a war room to monitor messages posted and shared online about him and act against people who share information about his background.

Capt Thamanat, a key coalition government coordinator, has been in hot water since a report surfaced in an Australian newspaper, that he had admitted to smuggling heroin into Australia in 1993, and had also forged a doctorate degree in public administration.

Denying the allegations, Capt Thamanat has ordered his subordinates to start gathering evidence to back defamation actions.

On Friday, he said that he already had a list of 100 suspects that he intended to sue.

Their acts appeared to be politically motivated, the deputy minister said, adding he learned from an intelligence report that they intended to "destroy the government's stability".

"I am just their target on the front line," Capt Thamanat said on Saturday.

"The masterminds want to topple the government."

The controversy over his educational background continued on Saturday when the Facebook page CSI LA made a live broadcast from outside of California University FCE, the university that Capt Thamanat claims he earned his PhD.

Meanwhile, Phumtham Wechayachai, the adviser to Pheu Thai leader Sompong Amornvivat, disagreed with Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam, who said that law does not require Capt Thamanat to hold a doctorate degree to be a minister and that just having a bachelor's degree is enough.

Mr Wissanu did not get to the "heart of the problem", said Mr Phumtham.

The real concern is Capt Thamanat's questionable background, which may affect the government's image and international standing in the eyes of foreign countries.

If other countries lose confidence in the Thai government, a string of problems, especially economic ones, will follow, he said.

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