Education director reassigned amid Sa Kaeo exam scandal
In a dramatic twist, Prayong Saraphum, the Director of Sa Kaeo’s Secondary Education Service Area Office, has been yanked from his post and reassigned to the Office of Basic Education Commission (OBEC) headquarters while an investigation heats up. The probe centres on Prayong’s alleged involvement in the shocking removal of a woman from the list of top candidates for a teaching job in the province.
Benyapa Yen-udom was initially touted as having aced the science teacher exam for a state school in Sa Kaeo. But in a bewildering turn of events, the 24 year old’s name was suddenly swapped out for another candidate. Deputy Education Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul has promised that OBEC will wrap up its investigation by the end of the week.
Surasak revealed that OBEC’s legal team is scrutinising the exam results of around 100 hopefuls to ensure a fair process. If it emerges that Benyapa did indeed score highest but was wrongly removed, she’ll be compensated for her financial losses, including the resignation from her teaching post in Ayutthaya she made based on the initial results.
The uproar erupted last Thursday, September 12, when Benyapa took to Facebook, revealing that the Sa Kaeo Secondary Education Service Area Office had published a list of nine successful candidates on September 9, with her name at the top for the science position. But by September 12, her name had vanished from the updated list, replaced by someone else. To make matters worse, Benyapa was instructed to delete her Facebook post by the office.
Prayong defended the office, claiming the mix-up was caused by an official mistaking Benyapa’s name—her registration number was just one digit off from the actual winner. He maintained that Benyapa did not have the highest score and wasn’t among the top nine candidates.
Benyapa, however, remains confident in her performance on the exam, Bangkok Post reported
“I want the truth revealed because I have not received a clear explanation as to what happened yet.”
