The National Anti-Corruption Commission and Surat Thani province have launched a large-scale inspection operation on Phangan island, targeting in particular a resort built on vacant land.
A joint team led by the deputy secretary of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (P.P.C.), Region 8, visited the site at Hat Chok Lam, in the commune of Phet Phangan. The resort is the subject of complaints regarding the illegal occupation of a plot classified as vacant land.
The owner appeared before the investigators and asserted that the land was legally his. According to him, it is family property inherited from his grandfather and acquired through old transactions. He indicated that the land title had disappeared and that the land registry services had refused to issue a new one.
Checks carried out by the CH7 editorial team revealed that the title had never been properly registered in the succession records. An official letter sent in August 1999 to the governor of Surat Thani already stated that this document had been issued without a number and without legal basis.
The land department determined that this land title had been issued irregularly and should be cancelled.
The local authorities ultimately indicated that untitled land falls under the jurisdiction of the local authority. Any occupation must therefore be subject to prior municipal authorisation.
The services concerned now have thirty days to gather evidence and submit their findings to the governor of Surat Thani. The investigation must in particular determine the conditions under which the land was initially occupied.