Whistle-blower ‘punished’ with transfer

The Mae Sariang assistant district chief said he was unfairly transferred from Mae Hong Son province because he was a whistleblower on the forced prostitution ring in the northern province.

Assistant chief Boonyarit Nippawanij said the Department of Provincial Administration recently transferred him from Mae Hong Son to Phibun Mangsahan district in Ubon Ratchathani, effective from July 11.

“The transfer is the act of a bully,” said Mr Boonyarit yesterday.

“I think the order came from senior officials, the local administration officers and the governor in Mae Hong Son who met recently. They were not happy with my complaint against senior officers in the province in relation to the underage sex trade ring,” said Mr Boonyarit.

Mr Boonyarit, also the Federation of Assistant District Chiefs of Thailand chairman, said he was looking into an allegation of irregularities in an exam held to recruit tambon administration officers.

“I am collecting evidence for a potential criminal case in response to a bribery allegation in the recruitment examination. Some applicants were said to have paid 500,000-600,000 baht per head to pass the exam,” he said.

In May, the Mae Sariang assistant chief claimed underage girls were invited to a party to be sold for sexual services on Oct 1, 2016. The investigation led to the arrest of a number of government officers, though the governor of Mae Hong Son was cleared of the charge. After the allegation of forced prostitution in Mae Hong Son emerged, Mr Boonyarit was ordered to move out of Mae Sariang district to Muang district of Mae Hong Son in mid-May.

Mr Boonyarit said he would continue working on the underage sex ring case, despite the transfer. However, he admitted it was playing havoc with his family life, as his family is in Chiang Mai.