The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) will next week hold an intensive discussion to determine how to proceed with the nominee case involving Kularb Kaew Co Ltd, the main piece in the jigsaw of the complicated Temasek Holdings-Shin Corp deal.

It is the first police meeting since the Commerce Ministry's Business Development Department wrapped up the case and delivered the results of the preliminary investigation to them in September.

A source in the bureau said a working committee had been set up, with Central Investigation Bureau deputy chief Pol Maj-General Vichien Singpreecha as the chairman.

"After the discussion we will decide if we need to interrogate any witnesses again in proceedings with the case," he said.

According to the CIB source, Thung Mahamek police recently passed the case to the bureau.

Though Kularb Kaew is a key element in the Shin takeover by Singapore's investment arm Temasek, the Thai authorities have not yet ruled whether it is a nominee. If it is decided that Kularb Kaew violated the Foreign Business Act by having Thai counterparts acting on behalf of foreign investors, all parties involved would be punished and the foreign shareholders would need to lower their stakes in Shin.

The Business Development Department yesterday insisted it had run out of authority to determine whether Kularb Kaew has breached the Foreign Business Act, saying that it is a police responsibility.

Asked about the delayed conclusion to the case, Kanissorn Navanugraha, director-general of the department, said it was not his agency's responsibility to decide whether Kularb Kaew had breached the law.

"The department completed the investigation. The police must decide whether the company has breached the law or not," he said, adding that from now on, the department will be a witness in the case and willing to assist the police in their investigation if they seek its help.

The department wrapped up its investigation in the Kularb Kaew case in September, and then passed the case to the Thung Mahamek police station, near Kularb Kaew's office, for further judgement on whether the company is a proxy of Temasek.

In the document, the department did not state that Kularb Kaew had definitely breached the Foreign Business Act. It only suggested that the initial probe indicated that all financial support for Thai investors in Kularb Kaew tended to have come from foreigners.

Police officers earlier complained that this lack of clarity had caused them problems.

Kanissorn insisted that it was the police's responsibility to judge the case and decide whether to file a petition against Kularb Kaew with the Criminal Court if it were decided that the company had breached the law.

Meanwhile, he said the department would also pursue an investigation against 16 more companies, including Telenor of Norway, which last year took over United Communication Industry - the parent company of Total Access Communication. The 16-company list was proposed during the Thaksin Shinawatra government, apparently to divert public attention from Kularb Kaew.

According to Kanissorn, the investigation of the 16 companies will continue despite the new political landscape. It will be conducted by a committee consisting of representatives from Securities and Exchange Commission, the Bank of Thailand, and the department.

Kanissorn also said the panel would accelerate the investigation of all companies. The results will then be passed to Commerce Ministry deputy permanent secretary Yanyong Phuangrach and the Foreign Business Committee.

Meanwhile, the Business Development Department has drawn up a development plan to boost the competitiveness of local retailers and wholesalers against the expansion of multinational retail giants. Kanissorn said the programme should help them come up with survival strategies.

Under the plan, the department - in cooperation with the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Japan External Trade Organisation - will set up a mobile consulting unit to advise small enterprises in the provinces.

About 30 local enterprises and government officials will be trained in the pilot project before being sent to give their advice to local retailers around the country.

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation