Bangkok: The Anti-Corruption Organization has issued a second open letter urging the Prime Minister to address the collapse of the Office of the Auditor General's building within 15 days, following an initial request that went unanswered. The organization plans to intensify monitoring and inspection, emphasizing that silence equates to complicity, and failing to safeguard the truth undermines public trust.
According to Thai News Agency, the Anti-Corruption Organization of Thailand addressed the Prime Minister in a second letter, highlighting that a month after the new Office of the Auditor General's collapse, significant tax funds amounting to 2,136 million baht have vanished, resulting in over a hundred fatalities and injuries. The ongoing search and rescue operations remain costly and immeasurable. Despite progress in demolition efforts, the government has shown no advancement in accountability. The bodies and debris remain unrecovered, and the investigation appears to lack standard procedures or proper inspection systems.
A recent public opinion poll indicates that 98% of respondents associate the incident with corruption, signaling a critical erosion of public confidence in the government akin to the building's physical collapse.
The Anti-Corruption Organization issued Open Letter No. 1 on April 19, 2025, requesting a government response by April 28, which was met with silence. The organization now presents a second open letter demanding answers, asserting that if the government fails to respond within 15 days, the public will seek answers themselves based on the available information. Key issues requiring government response include:
- Disclosure of all engineers, architects, and responsible parties involved in the building's design, structural calculations, and construction supervision, alongside full disclosure of contract construction drawings and modifications.
- Publication of construction material inspection results, including details of sampling, testing, and material quality certification, to verify compliance with contracts and standards.
- Investigation of the consulting firm's role in supervising the project to determine if negligence contributed to the disaster, particularly in construction inspections and design amendments.
- Announcement of the government representative responsible for the investigation, a list of relevant agencies, and an action plan with a clear timeline.
The organization reiterates that without a concrete government response within the specified timeframe, it will escalate monitoring and inspection efforts. It stresses the urgency of disclosing the truth and prosecuting those responsible to prevent future mistakes of such magnitude, as inaction equates to complicity, betraying public trust.