Thaksin to be quizzed on ‘privileged’ hospital stay

Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra will be summoned by a House committee to provide information related to claims that he received privileged treatment at the Police General Hospital (PGH) during his detention there.
The committee on state security, border affairs, national strategy and reform chaired by People’s Party MP Rangsiman Rome, will hold its second meeting on the issue on Nov 22 and will invite the relevant parties to attend, said a source familiar with the plan.
In addition to Thaksin, the committee is inviting Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong; Sahakarn Petchnarin, the director of the Department of Corrections; Pol Lt Gen Taweesilp Wechawitarn, the director of Police General Hospital; Wattanachai Mingbancherdsuk, the director of the Medical Correctional Institution; Pol Lt Gen Sophonrat Singhajaru, the deputy commissioner of police; and medical specialists and experts.
Committee members discovered “concerning” information during their first meeting on Nov 12, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.
That information related to the standard of medical treatment in prisons and the transfer of a sick prisoner who was diagnosed as seriously ill. But there were no details of treatment or photo or video recordings from Police General Hospital that were consistent with the standard of care for prisoners outside prisons.
Pol Lt Gen Piya Tawichai, a spokesman for the Palang Pracharath Party, said many officers could be punished if it was proved they allowed Thaksin to stay on the VIP floor of the police hospital for six months, without supporting medical evidence, until he was granted parole.
When an important prisoner was sent out for treatment, he said, he was required to be constantly monitored by guards or wardens. At the same time, the local police station must have officers on duty around the clock.
The CCTV cameras must function but all of the CCTV cameras on the 14th floor of the police hospital were allegedly broken. There was no additional evidence, such as medical records or daily prescription records, which he found to be suspicious.
Thaksin’s extended stay at the hospital is also being investigated by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).
Thaksin returned to the country last Aug 22 after 15 years of self-imposed exile. That very day, the Supreme Court ordered him imprisoned for eight years — later shortened to one year under a royal pardon — for abuse of power and conflict of interest while serving as prime minister prior to 2006.
On the first night of his stay at the Bangkok Remand Prison, corrections doctors determined that he had to be transferred to Police General Hospital. He walked out of there six months later after meeting conditions for parole, having never spent a night behind bars.