Outgoing Chiang Rai governor faces probe over absence

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In: South-East Asia

PUBLISHED: 29 Sep 2024 at 18: 10

Workers and soldiers remove mud piled up on the streets and in houses after floodwater receded in Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai last week. (Photo: Disaster Response Association of Thailand)
After flooding receded in the Mae Sai city of Chiang Rai last week, workers and soldiers removed mud from the streets and in homes. ( Photo: Disaster Response Association of Thailand )

Thailand’s Interior Ministry is launching a punitive sensor against cheerful Chiang Rai government, Puttipong Sirimart, after he was found to be frequently absent during comfort operations in the flood-hit state. &nbsp,

Anutin Charnvirakul, the deputy prime minister and inside minister, made the announcement on Sunday, one moment before Mr. Puttipong was scheduled to leave.

A new investigation is necessary, according to Mr. Anutin, who set the precedent for an investigation into Mr. Puttipong’s late August disappearance while most of the cabinet and Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra were in Chiang Rai on Friday and Saturday to assess flood-relief operations. &nbsp,

He claimed that the governor just visited the prime minister and ministries once before setting off for Bangkok to enter his retirement party.

Mr Anutin said the governor’s actions are tantamount to negligence, and the fact he is due to retire soon should n’t be an excuse to miss work. ” Therefore, I will order a section to launch an investigation”, said Mr Anutin on Sunday.

Mr Anutin even described Mr Puttipong’s presence as a “disgrace” to the Interior Ministry.

When Mr. Anutin reprimanded Mr. Puttipong for his tardiness when he and Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai visited the province on August 24, Mr. Puttipong wrote in explaining why he was unable to board the next flight from Bangkok to Chiang Rai on August 23. &nbsp, &nbsp,

Chiang Rai is one of the regions that has experienced severe flooding.