Residents chip in to get police station built

Residents chip in to get police station built

Fed up after the contractor abandoned work two years ago, locals in Phanom district of Surat Thani have been giving their friendly neighbourhood coppers a helping hand

Residents in Phanom district have taken up where a contractor left off, and are now building a local police station themselves.

National police chief Adul Saengsingkaew is briefed by an officer as he visits the Thanyaburi police station, one of 396 stations nationwide on which work was abandoned as a result of a pay dispute. APICHIT JINAKUL

Residents, local leaders and businesses have chipped in with funds to get the station finished and are now three weeks into the construction project.

Each day 10 to 20 people from villages in the surrounding area arrive to help out. They even carry concrete in buckets along scaffolding to pour it into the building's unfinished pillars.

The police station is one of 396 across the country on which work was abandoned as a result of a pay dispute.

The previous government awarded a contract to build the stations.

However, half way through construction, builders downed tools claiming they had not been paid by PCC Development and Construction Co (PCC), the sole contractor. The firm won the deal, which was worth 6.2 billion baht, from the Royal Thai Police Office (RTPO).

Police at the Phanom district station said they have not heard from the builder in two years.

Many iron column frames supporting the unfinished structure became exposed and were rusting.

Cramped conditions also made working in the temporary building unbearable.

Fed up with the inconvenience, residents banded together and picked up where the builders left off.

The residents said the station had been without a permanent command room and they hope a new building will improve the police's ability to serve the local population.

They said they could not wait for a new contractor to resume construction. The residents say they are more than willing to carry on for another two months to complete the work.

Pol Col Wijit Polsong, chief of Phanom police station, said the resurrection of the project and their collective efforts to achieve a common goal has become a matter of pride for residents. Pol Maj Gen Kiatipong Khaosam-ang, the Surat Thani police chief, said the province has another 10 abandoned projects.

Despite this, command buildings at several stations are still able to serve people adequately.

Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yubamrung said he will cancel the project for the construction of the unfinished buildings, now the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has found irregularities in the contract.

The contract terms were amended. Instead of the work being spread over 12 contracts, it was awarded to just one company, allegedly at the behest of former deputy Democrat leader Suthep Thaugsuban.

The budget was allocated from the Thai Khem Khaeng scheme of the previous Democrat-led administration.

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