Phuket MP seeks NACC probe into election interference allegations

A Phuket MP has asked the National Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate allegations that a senior Interior Ministry official instructed local administrators to help a political party during the election campaign.

The complaints were submitted on Monday, June 9, and focus on allegations against Department of Provincial Administration Director-General Narucha Khosasilvilai, who publicly uses the name Narucha Kosacivilize. Phuket Constituency 2 MP Chalermpong said the move followed evidence allegedly revealed by former Phuket Provincial Palad Rungruang Thimabut, including a LINE chat conversation said to have taken place about one month before the election.

According to Chalermpong, the chat included election polling information and a message allegedly sent by Narucha stating, “Help Namngern,” followed by a reply from the former official saying, “100%, sir.” Critics have widely interpreted “Help Namngern,” or “Help the blue,” as a reference to the Bhumjaithai Party, which is associated with the colour blue.

Chalermpong said the alleged communication could amount to an abuse of official authority and a breach of civil service political neutrality requirements. He called on the NACC to examine the facts and urged the Election Commission to open a formal inquiry and take legal action if warranted.

“The main issue is whether the Director-General actually communicated with subordinates through these messages and whether the messages are authentic,” Chalermpong said in a statement posted online.

He also called on Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to set up an investigation committee into the allegations.

The complaints are the latest development in a broader dispute that began after Rungruang and four other senior provincial officials were transferred earlier this year to temporary posts at DOPA headquarters in Bangkok. Rungruang later petitioned Parliament to investigate the transfers, saying they may have been politically motivated. His complaint was received by House Committee on Political Development, Mass Media and Public Participation chair Pukkamon Nunarnan and Chalermpong.

Chalermpong has previously suggested the transferred officials may have faced repercussions linked to their work on high-profile Phuket land disputes, including cases involving Freedom Beach, Bang Tao Beach and Nui Beach. However, no evidence has been publicly produced linking the transfers to those investigations.

The authenticity of the leaked chat remains disputed. Interior Ministry sources have previously questioned the screenshots, citing inconsistencies between names shown in the conversation and official election records. No independent forensic examination of the messages has been publicly released.

Narucha has repeatedly denied writing the disputed messages and rejected claims that the transfers were politically motivated. He has said his LINE account was accessible from multiple devices and that he did not send the “Help Namngern” message. He has also suggested the allegations arose in response to DOPA investigations into alleged misconduct involving Phuket officials and said he may take legal action to protect his reputation.

Anutin has previously said the matter would be reviewed and that an inquiry committee would be established if evidence of wrongdoing emerged.

Separately, Pukkamon on Monday alleged that a deputy district chief in Thalang used a LINE group linked to volunteer security personnel training to post messages supporting a Bhumjaithai candidate during the election campaign. In a statement posted online, she said the alleged conduct raised further questions about the political neutrality of some government officials, though she provided no evidence to support any wider chain of instruction.