Vatana faces trial over Klong Dan land scandal
Veteran political Vatana Asavahame is to be tried for abuse of power in relation to the illegal issuing of five land title deeds in 1992-93, a precursor event to the Klong Dan waste treatment plant scandal.
Vatana's corruption indictments were spelt out after the National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) reached a unanimous verdict yesterday that he was suspected of wrongdoing. "As deputy interior minister, Vatana conspired to force owners to sell their plots to his associates before prodding land officials to redraw the five plots with new title deeds that overlapped with public land," NCCC spokesman Klanarong Chantik said. The controversial plots were later sold at inflated prices as the site for a waste treatment plant. Klanarong said Vatana would also be prosecuted under the Supreme Court's Criminal Tribunal for Political Office Holders, a specialised court for corruption cases. The NCCC has named eight Interior and Land officials as fellow defendants with Vatana. The NCCC report will be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General for prepare for the trial.
|
