Thaksin Already Given New Passport?
 Surapong Tovichakchaikul had quietly delivered a Thai passport to Thaksin Shinawatra, alleged Democrat Party spokesman Chavanond Intarakomalsoot on Thursday.
Chavanond charged the foreign minister had managed to have the former premier's name deleted from the Consular Department's blacklist and give Thaksin the new passport after the old one had been revoked a few years ago.
He called on Foreign Ministry undersecretary Sihasak Puangketkaew to set up an ad hoc committee to investigate the alleged deletion of Thaksin's name from the official blacklist - the act which, he said, was considered illegal.
''It was said the foreign minister quietly flew to Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, to deliver the new passport to Thaksin himself,'' said the Democrat spokesman, adding an unidentified official of the Foreign Ministry had leaked out Surapong's alleged movement. The ex-premier who has remained in exile since he was ousted in 2006's coup had his passport revoked after the Supreme Court had sentenced him in absentia to a two-years prison under a Ratchada land grab lawsuit.
The Democrat spokesman alleged some officials of the Foreign Ministry secretly went to the Consular Department's head office in a submerged Chang Wattana area in late Oct to clear the ex-premier off its blacklist at the order of the foreign minister. Surapong allegedly traveled to the Middle East city to hand the new passport to his boss last month, according to Chavanond.
The Puea Thai Party's foreign minister, who earlier said he had planned to give Thaksin a new passport as a New Year gift, was not available for comment.
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