The costs of no control

The collapse of the State Audit Office (SAO) building in the March 28 earthquake continues to uncover the rot within the construction industry.

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The latest development was on Sunday when veteran engineer Somkiat Chusangsuk lodged a complaint with police, professing his name had falsely been used in design amendment documents related to the elevator shaft at the SAO building.

He claimed the fraudulent use of his name as the project manager was a way to cut costs and lend credibility to the 2.1-billion-baht project.

Mr Somkiat’s claims add to the growing scandal over the disaster, which has killed over 40 people that we know about, with more still missing.

At the same time, the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) is investigating contractors China Railway No.10 Engineering Group, local Italian-Thai Development Plc (ITD), and subcontractors hired to build the SAO building.

The probe covers bid-rigging and violation of the Foreign Business Act by China Railway No.10 Engineering Group by using nominees to open a construction firm.