No palms greased for son's promotion, says Pheu Thai MP

Chat said his son Songphan, a police lance corporal, had secured a master's degree from England and was applying for the position of a language export - one sorely needed by the police force.

"Everything my son has done [to secure the rank of a police sub-lieutenant] has gone through normal procedures," Chat said.

He said his son was discouraged and felt like quitting the force, but that he had talked him into staying on. Chat, a retired police lieutenant general, has also threatened to file defamation lawsuits against anyone making baseless allegations.

"The non-commissioned officers [who made the complaint] don't know about the policy on expert positions, so they have filed complaints. They are clearly not qualified for expert positions themselves," he explained.

A group of non-commissioned officers filed a complaint with the National Anti-Corruption Commission, alleging that commissioned positions saved for them were being taken away unfairly and given to "selected privileged individuals". They also lodged a plea with a House committee asking for a probe into the issue.

National police chief General Patcharawat Wongsuwan was also facing similar complaints over his daughter's promotion, though in a statement made through the force's spokesperson he said there was nothing illegal with is daughter pursuing the rank of police sub lieutenant.