Bangkok: The Prime Minister engaged in discussions with the Police Chief and the Secretary-General of the National Anti-Corruption Commission concerning the local government exam cheating scandal. Anutin Charnvirakul summoned the Commissioner General of the Royal Thai Police and the Secretary-General of the National Anti-Corruption Commission to Government House to address the corruption case involving cheating in local government exams before a meeting at the Royal Thai Police Headquarters.
According to Thai News Agency, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who also serves as Minister of Interior, initiated his duties at the Ministry of Interior in the late morning. He traveled to Government House before departing for official business in Indonesia at noon. At Khu Fah Building, he met with Police General Kittirat Panpetch, Commissioner General of the Royal Thai Police, Deputy Prime Minister Pakorn Nilapraphan, and Mr. Phumwisarn Kasemsuk, Secretary-General of the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC). The discussions are expected to focus on finding solutions to corruption in local government recruitment examinations, with a meeting scheduled for 2:00 PM today at the Royal Thai Police Headquarters.
Reporters noted that Mr. Pakorn's committee is set to summarize the causes and avenues for corruption in the local government civil service examination on August 4th, before submitting the report to the Prime Minister. Meanwhile, a meeting of the Central Committee for Local Government Employee Examinations will take place on August 5th at the Department of Local Administration. On August 6th at 1:30 PM, a meeting of the Central Committee will address the cancellation of the list of successful candidates in the 2025 Local Government Employee Examination and the creation of a new list, along with guidelines for implementation after the Central Committee's announcement.
Deputy Interior Minister Worasit Liengprasit indicated that the progress of the investigation into the local government recruitment exam corruption has resulted in a finalized list of those who altered their scores. This list will be submitted to the Central Examination Committee for finalization and to establish guidelines for dealing with the identified individuals. A meeting of the Central Examination Committee for Local Government Employees (KST) will occur on Wednesday, August 5th. Subsequently, the list will be presented to the Central Committee for Local Government Officials and Employees on August 6th for their acknowledgment, followed by distribution to the provincial committees across all provinces where civil servants have been appointed.
Once the provincial committees acknowledge the list, they will inform the local administrative organizations to proceed with the removal of those involved. It has been one month since the investigation began, addressing a significant corruption scandal involving tens of thousands of people and nearly 6,000 individuals who committed fraud. The authority to remove those involved in the fraud lies with the local administrative organizations. The KST and Central Committee meetings are anticipated to conclude by August 6th or 7th. The public disclosure of the list of those involved in the exam fraud depends on the legal team's assessment. Of the 5,925 individuals implicated, anyone found involved will face criminal charges, including those who illegally occupy positions.