Justice Minister meets injured persons of corruption and embezzlement in Krabi Oil–Palm Farmers Cooperatives case, insists on tracing property back to its members, and passes on to Cooperative Promotion Department for use as management guidelines for Cooperatives nationwide

Justice Minister meets injured persons of corruption and embezzlement in Krabi Oil–Palm Farmers Cooperatives case, insists on tracing property back to its members, and passes on to Cooperative Promotion Department for use as management guidelines for Cooperatives nationwide

       Yesterday, (Saturday, June 4, 2022) at 1.45 p.m. Mr. Somsak Thepsuthin (the Justice Minister) along with Mr. Triyarith Temahivong (the Director-General of the DSI), Pol.Capt. Piya Raksakul (the Director of Financial, Banking and Money Laundering Crime Bureau), Pol.Lt.Col. Jukkrit Visetketgarn (the Director of Special Operation Bureau), Pol.Capt. Surawoot Rungsai (the Director of Crime Relating to Submission of Bids to Government Agencies Bureau), Mr. Mahesak Punsanga (the Director of Regional Operation Bureau) Mr. Suphachai Khamkhum (Head of Special Case Operation Center Region 8, DSI), and Mr. Prakob Paopong (the Deputy Director-General of the Cooperative Promotion Department) jointly met the injured persons, comprising the representative of the Krabi Oil–Palm Farmers Cooperatives Federation Limited, its members and networks.

       Mr. Thepsuthin said “since the Ministry of Justice received the complaint from the representatives of the aforesaid Cooperatives in November 2021, investigation and inquiry by the DSI took about 6 months to identify the offenders in the case of maladministration of money (1,200 million baht) by the Cooperatives’ executives, making the Cooperatives having only about 10,000 baht left. I has been confirmed by the Director-General of the DSI and the inquiry official team that they will inform the offenders of charges by the end of June. These cheered the Cooperatives’ members up and generated their trust making the restate of the Oil-Palm Extraction Factory and its Oil-Palm Extraction Machine to operate again. Currently, I was informed by the Vice Governor of Krabi Province (Mr. Anuwat Mhodprink) that the aforesaid Cooperatives is currently operating and has its circulating fund over 25 million baht. Furthermore, the DSI will trace property of the aforesaid Cooperatives, worth about a hundred million baht, back to its members. For the enactment of a penalty law for selling young palms and low-quality palms proposed by the Cooperatives’ representative, the Department of Cooperative Promotion will discuss this matter with the Ministry of Commerce for working guidelines. Regarding the lay-off without salaries and severance pay of the Cooperatives’ employees totaling about 60 million baht, I requested the Department of Cooperative Promotion to further discuss this matter with the Ministry of Labor for assistance guidelines”.

       Mr. Somchai Thepjit (the Chairman of the Board of Director of Krabi Oil–Palm Farmers Cooperatives Federation Limited) said “as the result of the Justice Minister exercising his power to assist the aforesaid Cooperatives and its members, who are Palm farmers, currently I was confirmed by the special case inquiry official that the official found crime commission and will request the arrest warrants against the accomplices. Therefore, I would like to ask the Justice Minister to exercise his power to pursue property obtained from such criminal offence in order to compensate the aforesaid Cooperatives and its members”.

Dated June 5, 2022