A man is about to smash a TV set during a rally against what the protesters described as the government’s unnecessary support for iTV – now known as TITV – at the Finance Ministry yesterday.

A complaint was lodged with the Assets Examination Committee (AEC) yesterday over the role of Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, PM's Office Minister Khunying Dhipavadee Meksawan and two top government officials in the iTV-TITV saga.

It accused Surayud, Dhipavadee, PM's Office secretary general Jullayuth Hirunyawasit and Public Relations Department (PRD) director general Pramoj Rathvinij of abuse of authority by offering preferential treatment to iTV Plc and the television station's staff.

"The culprits should face criminal action," Constitution Drafting Assembly member and former senator Karun Sai-ngarm said.

Karun, along with Civil Rights and Freedom Protection Group chairman Veera Somkwamkid and another activist Suphaphon Methavee, led a group of about 30 people to lodge the complaint.

AEC chairman Nam Yimyaem said the committee would review the information before deciding whether there were grounds to take the case.

The complainants claimed the PRD had advanced Bt60 million to hire former iTV staff for the TITV operation in defiance of laws covering government project bidding.

"This means each iTV member of staff gets Bt60,000 on average. This is a higher rate than what PRD staff get. The fact that the PRD is exclusively hiring former iTV staff for the TITV operation means other people are locked out of job opportunities," Karun said.

Because the parent company could not pay more than Bt100 billion in concession fees and fines to the PM's Office, iTV's licence was cancelled. It is now managed by the PRD.

The station was kept on air by an Administrative Court order that the PM's Office must ensure uninterrupted broadcasting until a final court ruling.

iTV staff had approached the court after the PM's Office indicated the station would be closed temporarily while relevant problems were being sorted out.

TITV now belongs to the PM's Office, not iTV Plc.

Before the PM's Office assigned the PRD to take charge of the station, it had received assurances from the Council of State that the move was not against the law.

Karun said the PM's Office did not have the legal right to allocate broadcast frequencies.

After submitting their complaint to the AEC, Karun's group started hammering away at a TV set carrying a sticker that read "Singapore + Thaksin iTV Plc lackey". The TV exploded, causing a brief panic among both the complainants and officials at the Office of the Auditor General (OAG). The AEC operates out of the OAG office.

An informed source at the Labour Ministry said 1,009 iTV staff received a total of Bt235 million in severance pay including compensation for unused vacation days, and wages.

Meanwhile, a political source said that Khunying Supatra Masdit, a Democrat Party executive, had a 30-minute private meeting with Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont at Government House, reportedly to discuss undisclosed subjects relating to the iTV issue.

Supatra, who initiated the meeting, supervised iTV when she was a PM's Office minister during the station's earlier years under a Democrat government.