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Municipal police issued with warning
No more bribe taking says city hall
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
City hall has issued a warning to Pattaya’s municipal police after receiving complaints about their conduct, and has given them three months in which to improve their standards.
Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn says he is ready to punish inappropriate acts performed by municipality police.
The warning was issued on May 31 by Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn and Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh, after a Pattaya lawyer was asked to look into the complaints that had been made over abuse of police powers.
Ronakit said the warning amounted to a performance policy concerning honesty and adherence to lawful practices, and makes it clear that extortion of money from people is illegal. He pointed out that the municipal police have an employment contract that is renewed every year, and that any officer found committing acts against the regulations could find himself in contractual difficulties.
Niran said that the current image of Pattaya’s municipal police is opposite to that of policy, and that the city’s image suffers accordingly.
The mayor said that city hall policy divides police work into three distinct areas, namely Naklua, Pattaya and Jomtien. However, officers are only carrying out their duties in certain areas, and neglecting others. A new understanding needs to be created in which the police revise their operational coverage.
Niran said that if the present problems are found to persist within the next two to three months, offending officers might have to be removed from duty.
“They should be proud to conduct their duties,â€
