Thai MP blows whistle on 20m baht vote-buying scandal
A firestorm has erupted in Thai politics after opposition MP Krit Silapachai claimed he was offered up to 20 million baht and a cushy job in exchange for voting in favour of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra during a recent no-confidence debate.
The explosive revelation, made in a Facebook post on Wednesday night, March 26, sparked outrage and triggered an internal investigation by the opposition People’s Party. Krit, the MP for Rayong, alleged that he was approached by a man referred to as Mr A, who was acting on behalf of a senior figure from a little-known political party on the brink of dissolution.
In a post titled “When I was offered to become a cobra [betrayer] before the vote of no-confidence,” Krit shared screenshots of a LINE conversation with Mr A.
He claimed the man initially offered 10 million baht for his vote. When Krit didn’t respond, the offer was bumped to 15 million — and by Wednesday morning, it had ballooned to 20 million baht, plus a monthly salary of 250,000 baht, if he could convince nine other opposition MPs to switch sides.
“If defectors were expelled from their current parties, they would also receive an additional 5 million baht and a political position,” he alleged in the post.
According to the screenshots, Mr A asked Krit if he was free to talk. Krit replied he was in a Parliamentary meeting.
Mr A claimed he had something important to discuss and later provided the phone number of a woman who was allegedly the direct contact for the bribe.
Krit stated he did not answer her call, which came in around 9pm Tuesday, as he was watching the debate. The next morning, he says, the offer was increased yet again.
Deputy People’s Party Leader Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn confirmed the party is taking the allegations seriously but cautioned against speculation.
“We must verify the facts before jumping to conclusions. Was this a distraction or a real attempt to buy votes? We need to know.”
PM Paetongtarn has denied any involvement.
“There’s no need to buy votes — the coalition already has the numbers.”
Police and political watchdogs are now being urged to investigate what could be one of the most audacious bribery attempts in recent Thai Parliamentary history, reported The Nation.
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