The armed forces and agencies under the Ministry of Defence have signed an anti-corruption memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) as a pledge to perform their duties with transparency and make the military free from corruption.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon, who chaired the MoU ceremony Monday, led chiefs and deputy chiefs of all armed forces and agencies under the ministry's supervision to sign the MoU with NACC president Watcharapol Prasarnrajkit at the Army Club on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road.
The agencies entering the MoU included the Royal Aide de Camp Department and the Office of the Permanent Secretary for Defence.
Pol Gen Watcharapol also lauded Gen Prawit for cooperating with the NACC, saying the ministry has expressed its strong will to combat graft by joining the MoU.
According to the NACC, a number of graft complaints involving defence agencies, including the alleged irregularities in the Rajabhakti Park project, have been submitted.
Pol Gen Watcharapol did not say how many complaints the NACC has received or what agencies were implicated.
"Despite the ministry's purchase of its weapons under government-to-government schemes, the procurements still require inspection to make it clear they are conducted above-board," he said.
The NACC president said he was not concerned about inspecting agencies under the Ministry of Defence, insisting the NACC was independent from state control and could not be manipulated.
So far, more than 100 government agencies have signed the MoU with the NACC, Pol Gen Watcharapol said, adding 65 others including police agencies were expected to join this year.
Gen Prawit said the Defence Ministry's anti-corruption projects, including the MoU, were launched in March. Seminars to raise officers' awareness of corruption have been held at several army units.
"Superiors must know whether their subordinates have done something dishonest which is damaging to the organisation. These problems must be dealt with and corruption must be rooted out from the military. Whether it will succeed depends on awareness of these army officers," he said.
Gen Prawit said the duty of the Defence Ministry was to maintain national security and peace for the public as well as carry out its duty in a manner worthy of the taxpayers' money.
He said the government and the National Council for Peace and Order attached priority to the suppression of graft. However, the government cannot tackle corruption alone. It needs cooperation from the public and state agencies to help address the problem.
As for the army's purchase of weapons, Gen Prawit stressed every project was conducted in line with procurement regulations.
The armed forces decided to strike the anti-graft MoU with the NACC to make military officers realise that weapons procurement must answer to accountability.
Information of procurement projects is available on armed forces' websites, he added.