Bangkok: “Phumtham” entered the Ministry of Interior, stating that he did not come to order an increase in the Khao Kradong land acquisition process, which is proceeding according to procedures and will be completed by September 30. He hopes the new Interior Minister will continue to reclaim government land, expressing regret over the drug suppression policy and wanting it to continue.
According to Thai News Agency, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Mr. Phumtham Wechayachai, stated that his visit to the Ministry of the Interior today was not to give any orders. He mentioned that he would wait until the day the Prime Minister leads the new Cabinet to an audience to be sworn in, at which point his ministerial position would end. He added that he would not give any orders or sign anything, except for important pending matters, which he would then sign off on.
Regarding the Khao Kradong land issue, officials have been performing their duties. Mr. Phumtham has given clear instructions since taking office. After reviewing the evidence, clarity is needed to avoid any problems. The key is to clearly state that it is royal land, as it was bestowed by King Rama V. This is clear and without question. King Rama VI issued a royal decree, so this land is royal land, granted by His Majesty the King to the State Railway of Thailand. From there, various procedures followed, up to the issuance of the title deed. The railway map clearly shows that when the royal decree and the first map were issued, there were no residents living there. There were only 18 families, who had already paid compensation. Therefore, the land returned to royal ownership. After that, if there were any issues, the legal process would proceed. When the Land Department proceeded, it was only hindered by the previous process. The Director-General signed off on the matter. Legally, there were still problems,
as the Administrative Court had issued an order, so they had to be resolved. When Mr. Phumtham came to resolve the matter, he concluded that it was royal land. In fact, it was the Director-General’s authority to order the land to be royally owned, but it had to be done correctly. Therefore, they have gone back to the process to reclaim the royal land, which is currently just a process. Completion is expected by September 30th, and then it will be done according to the law. As for those who still protest, believing that they are the owners of the land, they can file an objection, confirming that everything will be done according to the law.
When asked by reporters whether he would like to pass on a message to the new Minister of Interior, Mr. Phumtham said he must know who the new Minister of Interior is. When reporters objected that Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul himself announced that he would be concurrently serving as Minister of Interior, Mr. Phumtham responded, “So you already know.”
“What I’ve done has been made clear to the public. You’ve said that everything should proceed according to the process, so I just hope that’s the case. I believe that as Prime Minister, you have the discretion to know that whatever you do is in the public eye. So, I hope that the justice process can continue,” said Mr. Phumtham.
Mr. Phumtham also expressed regret over the Ministry of Interior’s sole task: drug suppression. He believes this is a pending issue and is concerned that they have only just begun working on it. However, he feels that the public believes that if they truly take action on this issue and handle it without any need for favoritism, it will be beneficial to the country. He urges them to take this matter into consideration.
When reporters further inquired about the “Seal Stop Safe” policy, which preceded the “No Drugs No Dealers” policy during Mr. Anutin’s time as Minister of Interior, they said, “It’s possible, and it would be a pleasure if we were the leader of the government, the cabinet. We can implement anything good without any problems, and we don’t feel possessive about owning the policy. We’re even happy to have someone to carry it on. We hope to do so.”