Phuket Police to earn “coffee money’

PHUKET CITY: Phuket City Police Superintendent Wanchai Ekpornpit has a passion – other than fighting crime, of course.

Col Wanchai is mad about coffee.

That’s why he came up with the idea for ‘The Seat’, a new coffee shop under construction next to Phuket City Police Station.

The Seat is a ‘police welfare project’ aimed at supplementing the ‘meager income’ of the station’s men in brown.

Every Phuket City Police officer is a shareholder in the project, so each officer will get a cut of the profits at the end of each month.

You might call it ‘coffee money’.

Col Wanchai, a man who only drinks the finest coffee, beamed with excitement as he told the Gazette about the project.

“We’re going to use the very best beans to attract the city’s real coffee lovers,” he said.

The cafe will also serve cakes, though Col Wanchai would not be drawn on whether this would include donuts.

The 110-square-meter cafe will feature air conditioning, wireless internet, cable TV, ample parking and seating for 100 coffee lovers, 50 inside and 50 on an outdoor terrace – all in all a great place to hang out.

Col Wanchai said he hoped people would start to view Phuket City Police Station as “more than just a place to report crimes”.

“We want people to feel warm and welcome in our ‘police station for the people’,” he said.

“People can come and have a cup of coffee and go home with a smile,” he said.

“Everyone will feel relaxed in our café.”

Construction is slated to finish on September 14, after which the police will hire a professional team to get ‘The Seat’ up and running “as soon as possible”, Col Wanchai said.

“Soon, everyone can come and taste my favorite coffee at ‘The Seat’,” he added.

— Khunakorn Terdkiatkhachorn