PM vows not to interfere in NACC probe into Thaksin’s jail privileges
The premier expresses willingness to cooperate with the investigation, maintaining the inquiry will not tarnish her government’s image
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Tuesday that she is not intervening in the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC)’s investigation into the alleged favoured treatment given to her father during his jail term.
She was responding to reporters’ questions over NACC’s claim that it had asked the Police General Hospital for former PM Thaksin Shinawatra’s medical records three times, but in vain.
Paetongtarn, who chairs the Police Commission, said she would be happy to cooperate with the probe, but added that the Police General Hospital needs to consider whether giving a patient’s medical records to a third party violated the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA).
“If the law allows it, I will not be against it. I would like it to proceed according to procedure and will not intervene,” she said.
In August, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) called on the NACC to investigate the Corrections Department for allegedly favouring Thaksin, which it said was unfair to other inmates.
The NHRC claimed that Thaksin had been granted special privileges due to his social and economic standing, which violates the principles of equality.
The premier, meanwhile, said this investigation would not affect her government’s image because her administration was willing to cooperate with the probe.
She also said that she was ready to answer questions posed by foreign reporters while she attends the Ayeyawaddy-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation (ACMECS) summit in Kunming, China, from Wednesday to Friday.
