Love-motel operator sold FROC overpriced boats: Democrat
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An opposition MP yesterday came up with "new information" to support his allegation of irregularities involving the government's Flood Relief Operations Centre (FROC).
At a press conference held at the Parliament building, Vilas Chantharapitak, a Democrat MP from Bangkok, questioned the FROC director Pracha Promnok’s approval for the purchase of 2,500 small boats for Bt14.2 million. Pracha is also the justice minister.
The purchase was made by the Interior Ministry’s Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.
Vilas said the department paid far above market prices for the boats, 2,000 of which are made of plastic and 500 of fibreglass.
The opposition MP said the 7-foot (2.13m) plastic boats, bought for Bt4,500 each, could be acquired for Bt2,000 on the market. The highest price for the same type of boat available online is Bt3,500, he said.
Boats made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) bought for Bt6,000 each could be bought from the market at only Bt3,450, and for just Bt3,000 through a website, according to Vilas.
The Democrat said that while he was unable to find the 10-foot fibreglass boats purchased for Bt7,500 each, he did locate a 12-foot steel boat selling for Bt3,000.
Vilas said the FROC and Pracha could not avoid responsibility for possible irregularities in the purchase of the boats, as the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation cannot make such purchase without approval from the FROC and its director.
“There will be more controversies involving the FROC. This purchase is just one among tens of thousands of boats bought” by government agencies during the flooding, the Democrat MP said.
Vilas told yesterday’s press conference he had also discovered that the private company involved in supplying the boats to the agency is located on Ratchadaphisek Road and operates a love motel.
“To my knowledge, this company is not involved in the manufacturing of boats,” he said.
The MP said he would submit to the National Anti-Corruption Commission the information he had received involving the purchase of boats, and similar questionable deals regarding the procurement of relief supplies and other items worth Bt158 million. He said he could buy the same items at least 30 per cent cheaper from provinces as far away as Chiang Mai in the North and Songkhla in the South.
