Transport minister sets appeal for Hopewell case on September 20

Vowing to bring the Hopewell concession dispute case to an end, Transport Minister Saksyam Chidchob said on August 29 that he will submit an appeal with the Central Administrative Court by September 20. 

He said he will call on the court to consider some factual information related to the huge 1990 business deal between the ministry, the Hong Kong-based company and the State Railway of Thailand. 

He added that there was something “suspicious” about the Hopewell case, saying: “Something is not quite right with the contract, which only has eight pages even though it was a large project.” 

If the Central Administrative Court finds signs of corruption in the deal, a request will be made with the Criminal Court for a judiciary inquiry, he said. 

Citing a discussion with a committee he recently set up comprising legal experts from the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), the minister said: “There is still hope for a retrial. We must not neglect any changes, apart from compiling all the information in our appeal to the Central Administrative Court.” 

The minister added that the committee needs to obtain and get all information ready by September 11, before the OAG verifies and prepares the appeal document before September 20 to comply with legal deadlines. 

A payment of Bt11.888 billion (US$386,978,176) to Hopewell is due on October 19.