Why not tell people the truth about city blast?

National police chief Pol Gen Adul Saengsingkaew has repeatedly dismissed any connection between the May 26 bomb in Ramkhamhaeng Soi 43 and the insurgency in the south, however, it is not hard to sense that he is not telling the public the whole truth.

Adul was understandably frustrated with having to answer questions in public over the possible link. Sharing his frustration was Army chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha, who urged the media to give the police some breathing space to do their work.

But the damage has already been done. Provincial investigator Pol Col Sathanfa Wamasing had gone on the record to say that the alleged bomber, Idris Satapo, 24, has been linked to an insurgent group and possibly the cell that murdered Wat Phrom Prasit abbot and two other monks in Pattani’s Panare district in October 2005. 

According to various sources, Idris has admitted that he was a lookout for the May 26 bomb attack on Ramkhamhaeng street stalls and that he gave some names, all of whom are on the authorities’ black list of militant suspects in the deep South.  

And while the country’s top security big wigs dismissed the claim of possible links between the Ramkhamhaeng blast and the insurgency in the south, their instructions to their men suggest otherwise. 

Moreover, it has been reported that the Metropolitan Police Bureau said all police units in the capital had been ordered to coordinate efforts to monitor areas where students from Ramkhamhaeng University hang out, and check the background of teens hailing from the three southern border provinces.

Giving out conflicting information about sensitive issues is a common trait among security leaders in Thailand. The half-hearted explanation from Adul and Prayuth, along with conflicting remarks from a senior field officer, suggest that Thailand’s security apparatus does not have a contingency plan on how to handle urgent and sensitive matters.

Certainly, the thought of Malay Muslim separatist insurgents taking their fight outside of the Deep South has crossed their mind and the public knows this as well. 

Authorities often comfort themselves by telling the public that such a thing will never happened – but they never explained why they think that. 

And so when there is an incident, such as on May 26 in Ramkhamhaeng, that suggests something different, our top security men react in a way that is hardly reassuring. 

It is somewhat scary to see top security officials believing their own fantasy and wishful thinking. It’s so odd how they can’t even entertain the thought that insurgents from the deep South might target Bangkok. It’s not that these militants have to travel far or go through all sorts of immigration and official barriers to get to the capital. After all, these insurgents are all Thai citizens with official national identification cards from the Interior Ministry.

Perhaps, if our security big-wigs and policy-makers were afraid that the truth would scare people in the big city, or tourists, they might decide to hold information back. But if they were really concerned, they should stop thinking what’s good for us and come clean. 

A few foreign tourists might cancel trips to Thailand. But a true and honest answer could help mobilise the general public to work with the authorities to tackle possible incidents and challenges relating to public safety and national security. A society that is alert and on its toes is good for the country.