GT200 might erode confidence of southerners

While the probe into this device's effectiveness was ongoing and soldiers in the restive region continued using it, the Fourth Army Area chief insisted the device worked as claimed.

Prasit Meksuwan, an adviser to the Teachers' Federation in the Southernmost Provinces, said yesterday the Army chief and agencies must speedily clarify the situation to society especially the region's residents, who doubted both the detector's effectiveness and the Army's transparency in procuring the equipment.

He suggested they also probe the first decision to buy the GT200 devices for use in the southernmost provinces.

This issue could worsen the residents' lack of confidence in the Army, he said.

Ill-willed persons could use the opportunity to stir up residents' negative views towards the Army, especially operating officials in the area, he warned.

Fourth Army Area chief Lt-General Pichet Wisaijorn, who covers the deep South, said Porntip Rojanasunan, director of the Central Institute of Forensic Science, had initially proved to the media that the GT200 was successful in detecting explosives.

He said he wanted academics to look at the big picture and pay attention to the opinions of the officers on the ground. The device gave them confidence to do their jobs in the area, he said.

Without it, those on the front line wouldn't dare to do their work, as they wouldn't know whether there were any bombs planted by the militants and where, he said.

Deputy Interior Minister Thaworn Senneam said that as the probe was still going on and purchases of the detectors were suspended pending the outcome, soldiers in the restive South still had to rely on the device. He said the residents didn't worry and understood the military's need to use the device in its field operations.

The government has not placed more orders for the detector, he said.

There would be no problem if the opposition parties wanted to raise the issue in a censure debate, he added.