More teeth sought for probes
The Council of State and the Justice Ministry are jointly studying draft amendments designed to speed up the investigation into corruption by the ousted government, a senior government counsel said yesterday.
"The new rules, if approved, would allow the Assets Exami-nation Committee (AEC) to bypass the indictment hearing and commence trial immediately," Council of State secretary general Khun Porntip Jala said. In yesterday's Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Surayud Chula-nont instructed the two agencies to recommend the best option to enforce the amendments, Porntip said. "In my opinion, there are two ways to amend the AEC's mandate: one by revising the National Counter Corruption Act, which is the organic graft law, and the other by adjusting the junta's announcement No 30, which brought the AEC into existence," she said. Porntip said it might be easier to amend the junta's announcement than to tamper with the organic law. The Cabinet is expected to debate the draft next week and will push for fast-track deliberation by the National Legislative Assembly. Prime Minister Surayud ordered government agencies to fully co-operate with the AEC in gathering evidence on alleged irregularities. He decided not to issue a new Cabinet resolution on the co-operation as his government had already adopted a firm policy on the AEC and its fight against corruption. He reminded government officials they would face disciplinary proceedings if found to have rendered half-baked efforts in working with the AEC. Piyanart Srivalo The Nation
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