Thaksin's daughter claims he's been assigned to supervise drain cleaning outside prison, authorities say job on hold

Thailand's Department of Corrections, which oversees the adminsitrations prisons and inmates in the country, said that the job of Thailand's former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, to oversee the cleaning of drains in prison is currently on hold.

The department's statement followed remarks by former Prime Minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who said that the prison chief had assigned her father to help supervise drain cleaning work out of prison, Thai PBS World and  The Bangkok Post reported.

She made the comments following a visit to her father at the prison on Sep. 25.

Thaksin was sentenced to a jail term of one year on Sep. 9 after his claim of illness was rejected.

Must maintain good behaviour to be allowed to oversee drain cleaning

According to the deputy director of the Department of Corrections, only "top-level" inmates are allowed to perform such work, The Bangkok Post further reported.

In the case of Thaksin, he is currently classified as a "medium-level" inmate and must wait for three to four months before his classification can be upgraded, provided he maintains good behaviour.

Had volunteered to clean drains

Earlier on Sep. 25, the deputy spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections said that Thaksin had spoken with the prison director and expressed his desire to help with public work.

She added that Thaksin had offered to help supervise drain-clearing operations should the opportunity arise, and that such an assignment must comply with regulations regarding the deployment of inmates for public service outside prison grounds.

Left photo via Thaksin Shinawatra/Facebook, right photo via Khaosod English/Facebook