Tortrakul Yomnak, the civil engineer leading the current investigation into safety at the airport, sat next to the former Bangkok Post senior reporter at a Foreign Correspon-dents' Club of Thailand event on Wednesday night.

Tortrakul said he had received information from an engineer that there may have been a cover-up when a team of investigators went to inspect the runway after Sermsuk's story broke in 2005.

Tortrakul said systematic cracks at the airport could mean repairs to 70,000 square metres of concrete surfaces on the taxiways and runways. The best and worst-case scenarios are being prepared, which could see very expensive repairs taking up to three years.

The survey will wrap up next Friday and only then could the team inform the public of its findings "proven by data and not by opinion", he added.

Sermsuk expressed his dismay at being fired after loyally working at the Post for over 20 years, saying he felt he was just doing his duty.

"You report on what you see and what is going on," he said.

He referred to the situation as "my nightmare" and hopes his lawsuit against the paper will be decided by the end of the year.

The Thai Journalists Association (TJA) also gave moral support to Sermsuk and another senior journalist dismissed by the Bangkok Post, Chadin Tephaval, and called on the newspaper's management to treat them fairly.

A Post Publishing statement issued earlier this week defended its move, insisting that it was based on the findings of an investigation committee that Sermsuk and Chadin had not performed their duties properly. The management statement denied the dismissals were the result of political pressure from the government of Thaksin Shinawatra.

The TJA said it was proud of the two reporters. "Our findings discovered that the decision to publish the story on runway cracks for the first time on August 6, 2005 was a joint newsroom decision, which meant the story was approved by people with responsibility and authority.

"We believe the two Bangkok Post senior reporters performed their duties professionally, and we would like to express support and admiration for their dedication to professional duty to serve the public interest."

Alice Coster

The Nation