EC Member Accuses Facebook Page Of Libel

Mr. Somchai Srisuriyakorn, who oversees the election administration department of the EC, said on his Facebook that he has already filed complaint with the police against the page "Anajak Baigon Returns" (DDT Kingdom Returns).

 

He claimed he had been insulted by a previous post of the page, which alleged that the EC deliberately denied and prevented the payment from the government to farmers who engaged in the rice-pledging scheme. The statement was posted on 6 February, and has been shared nearly 700 times since. 

 

The EC Committee claimed that the action clearly violated the Computer Crime Act, which could result in the imprisonment of the page’s administrator for 5 years or a 100,000 baht fine or both. He also stated that he would pursue the same legal action for the post on 18 February, which implies the same message as the previous one. 

 

Mr. Somchai has been heavily criticised by pro-government critics for his apparent reluctance to organise the general election. Some sees his action as a dereliction of duty and even a conspiracy with anti-government protesters.