Bangkok, The Minister of Agriculture stated that he received a report that Srisuwan Janya threatened to extort the Director-General of the Rice Department in exchange for not making a complaint. Order legal advisors to check the facts. Emphasize the work of Ministry of Agriculture officials. Must be transparent and verifiable Captain Thammanat Phromphao, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, said: Received a report from Mr. Thanadol Suwannarit, Advisor to the Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, regarding the case where Mr. Natthakit Khintip, Director-General of the Rice Department, filed a complaint against Mr. Srisuwan Charaya, the leader of the Love the Nation, Love the Land organization, from the fact that Mr. Sri Suwan and his gang extorted money from the Director General of the Rice Department. in exchange for not filing a complaint Therefore, Mr. Thanadol was ordered to further investigate the facts. Then report to Captain Thammanat again. In this regard, I would like to emphasize that Impo rtant policies in the administration and work of civil servants of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives must be transparent and verifiable. If there are complaints about wrongdoing by officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives Always ready to inspect and receive inspections. Mr. Thanadon Suwannarit, legal advisor to Captain Thammanat Phromphao, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, said: Reported to the Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives about the matter that Mr. Natthakit Khongthip, Director-General of the Rice Department, filed a complaint against Mr. Srisuwan Jaraya. The police arrested Mr. Srisuwan and his associates today. Captain Thammanat ordered the information to be checked. Mr. Thanadon then inquired with the Director-General of the Rice Department, who replied that Mr. Srisuwan was threatened and extorted by demanding 3 million baht before negotiating to 1.5 million baht in exchange for resolving complaints about the project to support the reduction of production costs in rice cultivation and the project to improve production for rice growers, claiming that he had found Suspicious matters that may lead to corruption Mr. Thanadol said Mr. Srisuwan never came to complain about the Director-General of the Rice Department at the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. I saw it was posted on Facebook. But there had been an intermediary who had contacted Mr. Thanadol and informed him that will complain to the Director General of the Rice Department Therefore, we checked the information and found out that there was a group of people involved in political matters. Tried to use Mr. Srisuwan as the front person to complain. From the inquiry of the Director-General of the Rice Department Initially it was informed that There was pressure from being intimidated, fearing that if complaints were made many times will be discredited So he decided to have his wife take the money to pay him. By recording images and videos to use as strong evidence. As well as not wanting to create a loophole in filing a lawsuit because Mr. Srisuwan and others have legal knowledge. Also note that Mr. Natthakit is a senior and junior with Mr. Srisuwan at Maejo University. We met when we were studying. But I don't know. How close are they? We are currently investigating additional details to report to the Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives. Mr. Natthakit Khongthip, Director-General of the Rice Department, informed the Thai News Agency reporter that It is still not convenient to provide information in the case of Mr. Srisuwan. Janya is currently with the investigating officer. He reported the matter to the Minister of Agriculture. Passed the Minister's Advisor. Source: Thai News Agency