Thailand's junta suspends Bangkok governor pending graft probes.
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| Democrat Party candidate and incumbent governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra gestures as he arrives at the Democrat Party headquarters in Bangkok March 3, 2013. REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom/File Photo |
Thailand's military government suspended the governor of Bangkok, the country's most senior elected official, on Thursday while the country's attorney general investigates allegations of corruption and misuse of city funds.
The order suspending Sukhumbhand Paribatra, a member of the royal family and a former deputy foreign minister, was signed by junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha and published in the Royal Gazette.
The governor's office is facing several investigations for possible misuse of city funds, including a New Year light show in 2015 which cost 39.5 million baht ($1.14 million).
Sukhumbhand denies the allegations against him.
"If the investigation finds no evidence of wrongdoing, the accused will be reinstated," said Colonel Taksada Sangchan, deputy spokeswoman at the Prime Minister's Office.
The order to suspend Sukhumbhand came hours after he left Bangkok for South Korea's capital Seoul on Thursday, where he was due to take part in celebrations cementing the friendship between the two cities.
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