NACC to question two more in rice case

The National Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday agreed to question two more witnesses to shore up its case against former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra for dereliction of duty in overseeing the government’s rice-pledging scheme. 

Surasak Srirattrakul, a senior public prosecutor, said the fourth conference of the NACC and the Office of the Attorney-General at the NACC’s headquarters to find a common ground on the case came to the conclusion that more substantiation, particularly of the previous government’s claim of the existence of a government-to-government rice deal, was needed.

The NACC acceded to the state attorneys’ request to summon the two witnesses – an accuser over the government-to-government rice sale and a researcher from the Thailand Development Research Institute – and to observe the questioning.

The NACC would also seek more evidence against Yingluck.

The NACC and the Office still had minor differences over the completeness of the NACC’s investigative report submitted to the public prosecutors, particularly involving the government-to-government issue, Surasak added.

Sansern Poljieak, secretary-general of the NACC, said he expects the state attorneys to proceed with Yingluck’s prosecution at the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Offices after interviewing the witnesses.

The prosecutors have been suggesting that the NACC needs to flesh out its case by interrogating more witnesses, but the anti-graft agency has insisted it had already built a strong case against Yingluck. 

The NACC also had threatened to take the case to court itself if the Office refused to pursue it.

Sansern, who heads the NACC team in the working group with the Office, said the two witnesses had provided conflicting information and further grilling was needed to “sort things out”.

He did not think the statements from the witnesses were directly related to the case against Yingluck, saying the NACC already had initiated a separate investigation for the government-to-government rice sale. 

“Further questioning of the witnesses should complete the investigative report,” he said.

There were some good signs in the meeting. 

“We agreed on all issues and I don’t think we will be in conflict again,” he said.

The questioning of the two witnesses would take only a short time. 

“It will be completed in January and the other evidence should be ready by the end of February,” he said.