Prawit: I will quit if NACC finds me guilty
As pressure from critics mounted on him, Deputy Premier and Defence Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan yesterday offered to resign if he is found guilty by the corruption watchdog of any wrongdoing regarding the many luxury watches he has worn over recent years.
However, some political observers have pointed to the fact that the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), which is investigating the so-called “watchgate” affair, is being headed by Watcharapol Prasarnrajkit, who served briefly as Prawit’s secretary shortly after the junta came to power.
“Let the NACC look into the matter. If I am found to have done anything wrong, I will resign,” Prawit said.
He added that he did not think the NACC could be interfered with.
“The NACC has their own procedure of implementation. We need to wait for them to complete their work. I’ve already submitted my explanation to the NACC,” Prawit said.
Critics, including some supporters of the junta, have called on Prawit to step down, or take a long leave of absence, as more and more details about the luxury watches he has worn appear on social media.
Prawit is said to have worn more than 20 expensive watches after the junta came to power in May 2014, some of them valued in the millions of baht.