Wissanu urges caution in Thaksin share sale case
Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam has suggested the Revenue Department consult the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) if it comes across problems dealing with the Shinawatra share sale controversy.
However, he urged caution, saying no one should jump to conclusions as to who was right or wrong over the matter as certain facts were not publicly disclosed and require careful consideration.
The deputy premier stressed the department must study the controversial share sale and get the facts straight before deciding what steps to take next. The Revenue Department and related authorities have been invited to discuss the issue.
Earlier, Auditor-General Pisit Leelavachiropas advised the Revenue Department to invoke Section 61 of the Revenue Code and act swiftly to collect the 12 billion baht in tax from Thaksin Shinawatra over the sale of shares in Shin Corp to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings a decade ago. Thaksin’s children, Mr Panthongtae and Ms Pinthongta, purchased 329 million Shin Corp shares at a price of one baht each from Ample Rich, an offshore holding company controlled by the Shinawatra family.
They made a capital gain of 16 billion baht from selling those shares on the stock market to Temasek. However, tax authorities later determined the siblings had to pay taxes of 12 billion baht including interest and penalties, igniting a tax liability dispute which was settled in the Central Tax Court which determined the actual owners of the shares were not the siblings but Thaksin.
A reference was made to the ruling of the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions in 2010 on Thaksin’s asset concealment case concerning the sale of 1.4 billion shares in Shin Corp, including those held by the siblings.
Mr Wissanu said if the department stumbles on problems over the share sale issue, it should consult the OAG. The consultation would help the agency tailor a solution.
Regarding the statute of limitations in collecting the tax from Thaksin, which is set to expire on March 31, the deputy prime minister said the government has assigned the Revenue Department to explore legal avenues as to whether it can extend it.
He added the authorities knew under whose supervision the alleged failure to collect the tax occurred. But whether such individuals should be brought to account depends on whether they had the intention to abuse their authority.
Despite Thaksin being singled out as the real owner of the shares, Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong said yesterday he has instructed the Revenue Department to examine the possibility of re-evaluating the personal income tax filings by Mr Panthongtae and Ms Pinthongta for the transaction.
Meanwhile, a former Democrat Party MP called on Prime Minister Prayut Chano-cha to remove the chief of the Revenue Department and other officials for their alleged inaction over the controversial Shinawatra share sale.
Charnchai Issarasenarak, an ex-Democrat MP for Nakhon Nayok, said the prime minister should invoke an administrative order removing those people from their jobs, including Revenue chief Prasong Poontaneat. “If Thaksin is not taxed before March 31, they look certain to face the music, the whole lot of them,” he said.