Don’t rush Bangkok’s Collapsed State Audit Office building probe
Bangkok Post Editorial
Yesterday marked one month since one of the worst earthquakes in Thailand’s history shook the capital. The tremor mostly caused minor damage to thousands of properties nationwide, but one building — the under-construction State Audit Office (SAO) building in Chatuchak district — completely collapsed during the quake.
As of Sunday, 62 bodies had been recovered from underneath the rubble, but more than 31 remain unaccounted for.
While the efforts of workers involved in the search operation should be commended, the government’s inability to act swiftly to determine the cause of the collapse and the culprits behind it is causing frustration among the public.
Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra had promised to conclude the probe within a month, but so far, the government has yet to make any significant progress in its probe into the disaster.
Last week, the Department of Public Works decided to focus its probe on the decision to alter the design of the building’s elevator shafts.
So far, 40 engineers have been summoned to explain the decision. Officials, including Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, seem eager to lend their weight to the theory that the reduced thickness of the building’s elevator shafts significantly contributed to the collapse.
But they can’t rush to any conclusions — officials, Mr Anutin included, must not act in any way that pressures investigators into expediting the probe into the disaster in the name of protecting the government’s image.
They must be given enough time to find out what actually happened and who was involved in the design change and approval process.
Without a proper investigation, only the “small fry” such as engineers whose names are listed in construction documents and their supervisors will bear the consequences, while the big fish will remain off the hook.
Authorities must ensure the probe focuses on officials at the Office of the Auditor General of Thailand who were involved since bidding for the project was launched. To date, these officials have stayed in the background, leaving the public to focus on the design of elevator shafts and the project’s contractors.
In addition, they must scrutinise other projects by China Railway No.10 (Thailand) Co (CREC 10), a joint venture with Italian-Thai Development Plc that was hired to build the collapsed building.
The company is accused of collusion and using proxies to open a local construction firm. Last week, four CREC 10 executives were arrested, though they have since been freed on bail.
CREC 10 won the right to carry out about 30 public infrastructure projects in the country, including the passenger terminal at Narathiwat airport, several public hospitals, housing projects of courts of justice staff and a wastewater treatment plant, among others.
It is surprising that after the collapse, government agencies which granted CREC 10 the concession for these projects chose to keep mum. They were quick to assume that the other projects handled by CREC 10 are safe.
The Department of Public Works, along with neutral experts from the Engineering Institute of Thailand, must review the other projects to ensure their safety.
The SAO building collapse has undermined the public’s faith in the government’s transparency and safety standards in the country. As such, the official investigation must leave no stone unturned, or a similar tragedy will occur again in the future.
Bangkok Post Editorial
These editorials represent Bangkok Post thoughts about current issues and situations.
Email : anchaleek@bangkokpost.co.th
Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/3013340/dont-rush-sao-probe
