A bully with a government job

An arrogant senior public prosecutor in Bangkok is accused of forcing two junior police officers in Chon Buri to 
apologise to him in person for failing to take him to a food shop as he requested while visiting the 
eastern province last weekend.
The policemen of non-commissioned ranks declined to accompany him to the eatery since they were on duty at the time, but they gave him directions. That wasn’t enough for the prosecutor, who was heard complaining that the cops showed him disrespect. The policemen reportedly were ordered by their supervisors to apologise to the angry public prosecutor. The 
conversation was captured on video and made its way onto the social media.
The Attorney-General’s Office said on Tuesday it was trying to determine whether the prosecutor had committed any wrongdoing. Spokesman Somnuek Siangkong said that, if he did, he’d face severe disciplinary action. The controversy that’s arisen harms the agency’s image, Somnuek said, and in the past many public prosecutors have been sacked for causing trouble. “We try to get rid of the rotten fish to restore the public’s confidence and faith,” he said. 
If the facts as presented are true – and there’s no reason to suspect they’re not – this is just one more example of a common practice among senior bureaucrats: demanding privileges in the form of junior public officials serving their needs. Should they not get what they want, they feel that discipline is in order. 
Unfortunately this practice doesn’t stop at small favours, such as being accompanied to a restaurant. In many cases it involves asking that a crime be overlooked. And it is often junior, non-commissioned police officers – the very people tasked with enforcing the law on the street – who are asked for such “favours”. 
Of course there are corrupt officers who demand that criminals pay them bribes in return for immunity. But honest officers seeking only to perform their duty will be severely discouraged when supervisors ask them to kowtow to senior bureaucrats with the power to cause damage should they be denied favours. 
The public prosecutor in this case allegedly threatened the junior policemen, saying he could have them “jailed” anytime he wished. This was likely not the first time he’d made such a threat to junior officials who failed to answer his needs. 
Such bullying stems from Thailand’s patronage system, in which the mighty and the lowly rely on one another’s services and favours. Such a mutually beneficial arrangement between people of different social classes is tolerable if it fosters social harmony. But the practice is wholly unacceptable if it weakens law enforcement and allows the law to be abused.
Certainly we cannot uproot this habit overnight. What we can do is condemn the practice instead of condoning or accepting it. Supervisors must not force subordinates to apologise for failing to do what is not their duty, any more than for failing to do wrong, such as sparing law violators. They have to protect junior colleagues who honestly enforce the law. It is the honest ones who deserve the public’s support. 
Senior officials overseeing bureaucrats who request privileges and favours, meanwhile, have to discourage such acts. They need to take action to assure the public that they such practices are not being permitted.