Former PM Thaksin sentenced to 5 years

Thailand’s Supreme Court has sentenced former PM Thaksin Shinawatra to 5 years in prison after finding him guilty of illegally owning shares in phone companies with government concessions, as well as conflict of interest, for changing concession fees and excise taxes to benefit his family’s company, Shin Corp. The court heard that Thaksin held a majority of shares, through proxies, in Shin Corp, which was granted a concession by the state, thus violating the Constitution.

The case was suspended after Thaksin fled the country in 2006, but was revived after the proclamation of an organic law that allowed the court to hear the case in absentia. The court also heard that, while serving his second term as PM, Thaksin approved the issuance of an Executive Decree reducing excise tax on mobile phone concessionaires, from 50% to 10%, thus benefiting 2 mobile phone operators, Advance Info Service and Digital Phone Company. Both were affiliated with Shin Corp.

The 2 mobile phone operators received refunds of the excise tax they’d paid, which they used to reduce the concession fees they were to pay to the Telephone Organisation of Thailand and the Communications Authority of Thailand, causing damage to the state.

The court sentenced Thaksin to 2 years for illegal shareholding and 3 years for conflict of interest.

Last year, Thaksin was sentenced to 3 years over Exim Bank’s loan to Myanmar and another 2 years over the 2 and 3 digit lottery project.

SOURCE: Thai PBS World