People’s Party-list MP Rangsiman Rome is asking why the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) has not cut the electricity supply to several townships in Myanmar, known to be havens for Chinese-operated call centres, even though it has the authority to do so.
He also claimed that a Thai police officer, with the rank of major-general, has been involved in a casino business in Myanmar’s Myawaddy township, opposite Mae Sot district of Thailand’s Tak province.
In his capacity as chair of the House Committee on State Security, Border Activities, National Strategy and Reform, Rangsiman noted that the call centres in Myanmar affect the economies of not only Thailand, but many countries around the world and an enormous amount of money cheated from victims is flowing into the scam gangs accounts very day.
Rangsiman added that the failure by the government to curb or suppress these illegal activities has hurt the image of Thailand and affects the country’s tourism business, as evidenced by the cancellations by several Chinese tour groups to Thailand following the trafficking of Chinese actor Wang Xing to Myanmar.
He noted that Thailand can do something to weaken and disrupt the illegal operations in several border townships in Myanmar, such as cutting electricity supplies and internet connections.
The People’s party MP said that the PEA, which is supervised by the Interior Ministry, has the authority to cut power to Myawaddy township, because the activities of the call centres there pose a security threat to Thailand.
“Why does the PEA have to wait for others to tell it to cut the power supply?” he asked, adding that he wonders whether the PEA’s reluctance to take the action stems from its concerns over revenue loss or because it has been ordered, by some influential figures, not to cut the supply.
Rangsiman said that parliament will continue to do its job, within parliamentary framework, to deal with the problem of call centres in Myanmar.
