Director in hot seat over school lunch corruption

Students at Ban Tha Mai School in Tha Chana district of Surat Thani enjoy a proper lunch on Friday after the exposure of the food scandal there. (Photo by Supapong Chaolan)

A school director in Surat Thani could face disciplinary and criminal charges for corruption in the school lunch programme, which consisted of nothing but noodles and fish sauce on some days.

A preliminary investigation found irregularities in the school lunch programme allegedly committed by Somchao Sitthichen, the director of Ban Tha Mai School in Tha Chana district, said Boonrak Yodpetch, secretary-general of the Office of the Basic Education Commission (Obec) in Bangkok.

The investigation was conducted by the Primary Educational Service Area 2 in the southern province.

The 600-page report also found grounds for corruption in four other projects, including the construction of a concrete road in the compound, said Kosol Prathumchat, an adviser to the Education Ministry, who visited the school on Friday.

The school lunch scandal was exposed after the parent of a pupil filed a complaint with the provincial Damrongtham centre.

It drew widespread public attention and anger after the Strong Club, a local anti-corruption group, posted a video clip on May 31 showing children with nearly-empty lunch plates. Mr Somchao was shunted to the education office a day later to pave the way for the investigation.

Video clip from Strong Club Surat Thani Facebook account

The provincial Anti-Corruption office in has also stepped in to investigate other suspected irregularities at the school.

An Education Ministry source in Surat Thani said the school director had reported to the office and then taken leave, returning to his home in Nakhon Si Thammarat.

Ban Tha Mai School has 278 students and receives a budget meals at 20 baht per student per day. The meal subsidy is allocated by the Interior Ministry through a local administration organisation to the school.

Mr Somchao and a number of teachers signed to receive the money but the former school director reportedly took sole charge of arrangements to buy food for cooks, leaving a loophole to pocket the money.

The menu for the students was fixed every day. On some days it consisted of nothing but Chinese rice noodles with fish sauce.

Kanokporn Saengsorn, the parent of a Prathom 6 student, said that on other days children received rice with curry but there was hardly any pork in the curry.

Education Minister Teerakiat Jareonsettasin has made clear that if the school director is found guilty, he would face severe disciplinary punishment and the ministry would file criminal and civil lawsuits against him, according to Gen Kosol.

Teachers at Ban Tha Mai School complain to Gen Kosol Prathumchat, an adviser to the education minister, that they were forced by the school director to approve the food budget. (Photo by Supapong Chaolan)

Four new teachers who signed documents related to the meal budget told Gen Kosol that Mr Somchao used threats to force tham to do so. They said they were told they would receive negative performance evaluations if they did not cooperate.

Aree Khamkaew, the acting school director, said some teachers and parents did not feel safe after the lunch issue came to light, and police had been called in to provide safety for them at the school.

Phol Sattho, the chief of the anti-graft agency in Surat Thani, said officials had spoken to 10 witnesses to collect evidence and seized items in the office of Mr Somchao. The agency is continuing with its preliminary investigation.