During the Bangkok Mini Maker Faire Year 2 in front of The Street Ratchada, the winners of the Enjoy Science: Young Makers Contest, which was part of the Chevron Enjoy Science project, were announced.

The King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang’s BME Innovation KMITL Team 2, which delivered a fall surveillance system using 3D non-contact sensor, was the winner in the general education category.

Songkhla Polytechnic College’s Team A, which produced a cane equipped with a fall surveillance sensor, took the honours in the vocational education category.

Each winner pocketed Bt400,000 plus a study trip to the Maker Faire United Kingdom.

Chevron Thailand Exploration and Production Ltd and the Science and Technology Ministry’s National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) collaborated with the National Science Museum (NSM) and the Office of the Vocational Education Commission (OVEC) to hold this contest.

The Bangkok Mini Maker Faire Year 2, the country’s biggest event of its kind, brought together more than 345 Thai and international people who showcased 122 works and inventions at more than 60 booths.

The event, which attracted more than 5,000 attendees, also offered activities aimed at engaging the younger generations and igniting their interest in the maker culture, such as workshops on 3D printers, drone-making, a Hebocon |robot contest for dummies, and electric parades.

Chevron Thailand’s business support general manager Artit Krichphiphat said this year’s event built on the success of the inaugural Bangkok Mini Maker Faire 2015.

“We hope the event will strengthen the maker culture and the community, enabling the country to prepare for the Thailand 4.0 era, a governmental strategy to transform Thailand into a country driven by technology, creativity and innovation,” Artit said.

NSTDA president Narong Sirilertworakul said that in response to the Thailand 4.0 strategy, the Science and Technology Ministry launched the Startup Thailand policy to equip Thai startups with key skills such as how to add value to products and services, and equip them with an entrepreneurial mindset to initiate both Asean and global market expansion.

“The strength of Thai startups is the key in driving economic growth. And a strong maker culture foundation nurtured by events such as this will contribute to the stable development of the startup sector,” he said.

NSM acting director Kannikar Wongthongsiri said: “Supporting a strong maker culture in Thailand will stably enhance its national competitiveness. NSM is additionally promoting the maker culture through the showcase of maker works as well as the Makerspace opening – a co-working space equipped with maker tools and equipment – at our affiliated museums and national science festivals to inspire innovation that can elevate quality of life and democratise opportunities in society for all.’

OVEC Bureau of Research and Development director Mongkolchai Somudorn said to turn Thailand into an innovation-driven economy, the country needed to upgrade the quality of its vocational education, which was important for the manufacturing sector, service sector and entrepreneurship.

“To instil a maker culture among vocational students is a workforce development strategy platform to align with the country’s increasing need for an innovation-led workforce, in place of a manual workforce,” Mongkolchai said.

Artit said the Chevron Enjoy Science programme, initiated in 2015, was a five-year initiative designed to promote awareness and interest in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) among students across the general and vocational education systems.

“We believe the enhancement of national competitiveness through innovations can be another drive toward the success of Thailand 4.0 strategy,” Artit said.

THAI AUTHORITIES should enforce the anti-money laundering law in connection with the UN-sanctioned Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to beat the statute of limitations that protects some people who took bribes in the multi-million-baht Rolls-Royce scandal, an anti-graft academic says.

Sangsit Piriyarangsun, an associate professor at Rangsit University, yesterday told a seminar on corruption and national development that Thai authorities already have conclusive documentary evidence on bribery involving UK aircraft engine maker Rolls-Royce and Thai Airways International (THAI) and PTT, but no action has been taken against the individuals who received the bribes.

According to Sangsit, there were 52 pages of official document concerning PTT and another 40 concerning THAI on Rolls-Royce’s illegal payment of money to win lucrative deals from the two Thai state enterprises.

He said the evidence is conclusive and other countries have already identified those responsible for receiving the bribes and taken legal action against them.

For example, a former top executive of Garuda Indonesia airlines is facing charges.

Sangsit said there were more than 30 million pages of documentary evidence in the multi-country scandal so Rolls-Royce decided not to fight the case in court and had to pay a fine of more than US$800 million to US and UK anti-graft authorities to avoid further legal actions.

As well as Thailand, illegal payments were also made to officials in Indonesia and India in return for aircraft and other engine deals.

Sangsit said the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) and other related agencies should be authorised to enforce the anti-money laundering law in connection with FATF which states that money laundering cases have no statute of limitations since some of the Rolls-Royce deals with Thai customers were signed more than 20 years ago.

At present, only Thailand’s Anti-Money Laundering Organisation (AMLO) can enforce the legislation, which is a key legal mechanism to fight corruption, so enforcement has been inadequate so far.

Based on existing evidence, the Rolls-Royce deals with THAI and PTT are under the jurisdiction of anti-money laundering law, according to Sangsit.

The academic also urged AMLO to quickly comply with the FATF requirements on adopting additional anti-money laundering measures including those concerning Thai banks to maintain the country’s status as a safe country for international financial transactions.

In overhauling the anti-graft mechanisms, he said, the NACC, Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), and Department of Special Investigation need to have authority to enforce the anti-money laundering law along with AMLO, which has to have a check-and-balance on its authority.

Meanwhile, Tewin Wongwanich, chief executive officer of PTT, said the state owned company has zero tolerance for corruption and the Rolls-Royce scandal will serve as a lesson to prevent future incidents. According to Tewin, more than 100 people are believed to be involved in the illegal payment of funds by Rolls-Royce to win business deals from PTT and an investigation is underway in cooperation with anti-graft authorities.

Sansern Poljieak, secretary general of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), yesterday said the United Kingdom’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has expressed concern that the corruption offence carries the death penalty under Thai law.

He added that the NACC explained to the UK anti-graft agency that despite having the death penalty under anti-corruption law, no convicted wrongdoers had been sentenced to capital punishment.

Sansern said the NACC also allayed the SFO’s concern that the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) would intervene by issuing orders under Article 44 of the post-coup interim charter. He added that the NACC was the main agency in charge of investigating corruption cases.

His agency also has confirmed with the SFO that it is the agency responsible for investigating the Roll-Royce bribery scandal, Sansern said.

Auditor General Pisit Leelavachiropas said yesterday that his office has the legal responsibility to investigate corruption allegations against state agencies or enterprises such as Thai Airways International, PTT and electricity authorities.

It was revealed yesterday that seven applicants involved in the police entrance exam cheating scandal at Provincial Police Region 1 have had their results cancelled.

National police deputy chief Pol General Dechnarong Suticharnbancha presided over a meeting yesterday at Royal Thai Police headquarters of the team set up to investigate cheating in entrance exams at the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) and Provincial Police Regions 1 and 7.

The results from Provincial Police Regions 1 and 7 were announced yesterday, while the MPB’s results will be out on Monday.

Dechnarong said Provincial Police Region 1, which found six people who were allegedly hired to take the test and show answers to applicants, disqualified seven applicants due to suspicions. They have yet to be charged but face further investigation.

Officials at Provincial Police Region 7 announced that 339 people passed the written exam, but had not disqualified anyone, he said. To prevent a reoccurrence, a panel led by national police chief’s assistant Pol Lt General Phromthorn Pak-at would study how to prevent exam cheating, he said.