What he said on Saturday and ... Sunday

On Saturday, Premier Samak said police and soldiers were ready to remove People's Alliance for Demo-cracy protesters from Makkha-wan Bridge. Yesterday he denied saying there would be a crackdown.

What he said on Saturday ...

Samak says the PAD's rally had forced him to make his emergency broadcast.

"I am responsible to tell you I must take charge. You can't be [at the protest venue]. It's illegal …

"Therefore, I must make you out of there [rallying venue]. No matter that you built forts with clubs [weapons] or no matter whom you brought with you, you gathered bad guys to do bad things in the city and you will have to pay for what you do. I won't let go, nor will police and soldiers. Don't hope for that."

He said several times he had readied police and soldiers to move the demonstrators, and reiterated this point again at the end of the broadcast.

"I am repeating for you to listen to me for a third time that I have managed, prepared readily both police and soldiers. If you are still stubborn, what would [you] do?

"Police must do their job. You must remove your own possessions by yourself first. If you don't, police will. Please acknowledge, I am saying this to let all the people know we are the government.

"I have to be responsible. I take charge of this and I will be responsible for everything police and soldiers do. I am prime minister, not anyone else. And please don't brand me as a puppet government."

On Sunday when he said he did not say it…

"I did not threaten to crack down [on protesters]. I insist the meaning I have said what [protesters] did at the foot of the bridge was illegal and officers will do their job. But they have agreed how they would do it. I am the government leader and I allowed [protesters to protest] for seven days. They [officers] must take measures according to the law. The Royal Family must have taken other routes. Students were in trouble. 'Crack down' is not the word. But police must talk to them that they cannot do it here. They must move out of there.

"May I emphasise that all the television stations broadcast this to the world. I beg here [protesters] can't stay here [at rally venue].

"They [officers] did not set a deadline and the talk [by officers to the protesters] will be broadcast to the world they can't block up here. If you don't remove, police must do it. There's no beating, there's no arresting anyone. But they [protesters] did that themselves, they mobilised themselves. Academics chorus that the government is set to lose if it uses force."