Hounded by a long-standing bankruptcy action, Chira Honglada-rom handed in his notice as acting director.

Earlier in the day, Niwattum-rong Boonsongpaisan, chief officer and director of iTV, submitted his resignation. And three other directors - Anan Leetrakul, Songsak Premsuk and Saparanan Tanviruch - also stood down, according to a filing by the company to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

As of yesterday, the company's board of directors had five members: Somkid Wangcherdchu-wong, Nit-thimon Juengsiri, Sumethee Innu, Vichakoraput Rattanavichaien and Jiraporn Viwongsakdi.

Chira said he was deemed not fully qualified to take the TITV job as the legal action subject him "to asset seizures", but not full-scale bankrupt status. He planned to take an advisory role in a technical committee regulating radio and television UHF frequencies. Chira made his decision public after a four-hour meeting with PM's Office Minister Khunying Dhipava-dee Meksawan, chairperson of a board of directors overseeing the TITV.

Chira said his assets had been seized by a court order after he took out a Bt800,000 loan on his behalf of a student close to him, but the man, whom Chira identified merely as "Pratheep", failed to repay the amount, plus nearly Bt200,000 in interest. The court required him to undertake a refinancing plan to repay the debt, as well as seizing his assets.

He said Dhipavadee asked him to stay and serve on the technical committee as an adviser after he submitted his resignation.

Shin Corp executive Somprasong Boonyachai resigned as iTV company chairman last Monday, ahead of the historic day on March 6, when iTV's broadcasting concession was revoked.

iTV was 53 per cent owned by Shin Corp but is now 96 per cent directly and indirectly owned by Singapore's Temasek Holdings.

In its notice to the SET, iTV said that on Wednesday, it received notice from the Prime Minister's Office concerning the revoking of its concession, plus the payment of due debts and the transfer of all assets used for operations during the concession agreement to the PMO within a specific time.

A company shareholders' meeting is due to be held on March 20 to consider and approve procedures for the company's operations - rather than to settle the dispute between iTV and the Prime Minister's Office.

iTV said it had ceased all commercial activities by cancelling commercial contracts and employment contracts.

After the revocation, iTV said it would hire a third-party company to manage its accounting system such as billing, collecting, tax, legal documents, and other work in relation to the company's business with government officials, including undertaking the preparation of the legal case that will continue after March 8.

Banlang Pinsakol, a public prosecutor charged with filing a civil lawsuit against iTV demanding Bt2 billion in unpaid concession fees, said he would file the suit on March 30 after the ministry gave him the exact fee amount.

Thitiphan Chuebunchai, dean of Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Law, said iTV staff had deliberately ignored blaming the station's managers for all its problems and their hardship. He called on iTV staff to contemplate their roles and whether they had performed their jobs impartially and professionally over the past five years after Shin Corp obtained a majority stake in the group.