Tawee Sodsong, leader of the Prachachat Party, reaffirmed a serious commitment to drug suppression, declaring a firm stance to strictly control kratom and cannabis, insisting they must be reclassified as illegal drugs.
On 4 February 2026, Pol. Col. Tawee Sodsong, leader of the Prachachat Party and the party’s prime ministerial candidate, revealed that a key policy of the Prachachat Party is a strong, serious crackdown on drugs, as they are a major problem destroying society, especially in the southern border provinces. After visiting Malaysia to meet with the head of the Kelantan State Security Forces, he found concern because they view the Su-ngai Kolok and Tak Bai districts as hotspots for drug proliferation, even calling them the ice drug capitals, which is very shameful.
Pol. Col. Tawee added that these drugs are smuggled in from the Golden Triangle to hide in the southern border provinces. He believes influential figures or politicians are behind this, using money gained from harming the people to engage in politics again, which is very worrying. If he and the Prachachat Party come into power, they will seriously deal with drug dealers using mechanisms such as anti-money laundering. The drug problem has caused issues from the border area to the point where Malaysia has built border fences to prevent drug trafficking, which negatively impacts the local economy. The Prachachat Party plans to manage the area by eradicating drugs and restoring confidence to neighboring countries that this area will no longer be a source of drugs that destroy the quality of life of people in both countries.
"Drugs are a serious issue. Wherever drugs spread, there can be no peace or security. We must solve this seriously. When I was Minister of Justice, I pushed for bans on selling kratom, prohibiting sales near schools because it intoxicates youth. The local people cooperated. If we return to government, kratom and cannabis must be reclassified as illegal drugs. We will enforce a strict crackdown and asset seizure. For users, there must be appropriate rehabilitation processes."