Three candidates for Bangkok governor. Answer questions about the alleged sales of district director positions and how they would resolve the issue, while Chadchart insists that during his term there was no such sales, and if anyone is found involved, they must be dealt with thoroughly.
On 8 June 2026, reporters reported that Thairath TV Channel 32 and Thairath Online will broadcast live the special program "City Control Game," a contest challenging visions that will clearly show which Bangkok governor candidate can effectively solve the city's problems. The program will delve deeply into their visions through challenging missions including a puzzle test of wits, a city crisis tier list, and a tough question round for the governors, hosted by Pa Toy and Kai Pongsakorn.
The Bangkok governor candidates participating to present their visions and compete in problem-solving for Bangkok residents are Anucha Boopachaisri from the Democrat Party, Chadchart Sittipunt as an independent candidate, and Chaiwat Stawarawijit from the People’s Party.
After all three governor candidates presented their visions and completed the puzzle test of wits, the program moved to the segment “Tough Questions for the Governor.” Each candidate was given two minutes to answer. The second question was “If the sale of district director positions is real, how would you solve this problem?”
Anucha Boopachaisri, Democrat Party candidate for Bangkok governor, said, “Corruption must not happen. Not only bribery, kickbacks, or any money-related corruption must be eliminated. People must be selected based on their abilities, not on who can pay for the position. In the past, there may have been tickets sold for positions, which must never happen again. Bangkok must not have people continuously benefiting from such corruption.
Because if someone pays money to buy a position, they will certainly try to recoup that money. Therefore, in Bangkok, bribery must not exist. The buying and selling of positions must not occur. The governor must be determined and signal from day one that if anyone knows or has clues, they must report directly.”
“Currently, the Democrat Party has a platform called ‘State Watch’ where any unusual information can be immediately spotted without needing to send it to the National Anti-Corruption Commission first to decide if there is merit. This platform helps monitor procurement irregularities, districts with unusually long approval times, and suspicious wealth. We can investigate all these through ‘State Watch,’ a technology that greatly assists.”
Meanwhile, Chadchart Sittipunt, independent candidate for Bangkok governor, stated, “I confirm that during my term there was no buying or selling of positions. This election is good because we talk a lot about corruption, and it’s not just during elections but every day. We must solve this problem or Thailand cannot survive. Since day one of being governor, I have said in every meeting that we do not tolerate corruption.
Corruption starts with people. If we put bad people in positions, that is the root of corruption. Buying positions makes people borrow money to pay for them, and those who take the money become slaves to it because they have paid. I still insist this is a serious issue that must be addressed seriously. We have a policy: our boss is the people. We will perform well. Bringing dishonest people to work will never yield good results. It must start with selecting honest people with proven track records.”
“If asked how to solve it, we must be serious. Anyone involved must be prosecuted. If the governor is involved, they must be imprisoned. This must be taken seriously; it is unacceptable. Clear measures and transparent selection processes must be established, with a scoring system and neutral committee to oversee the procedures. Bangkok already has such systems. I have told Bangkok officials many times that we are very fortunate to be civil servants with benefits far better than the public. If you still think of corruption, you are ungrateful to the people. This is crucial.”
“Besides position sales, the key is to disclose as much information as possible and allow the public to help monitor. We have an app called 'Fondue' with a special menu for reporting corruption anonymously. In the past four years, 41 officials have been dismissed, which is unprecedented.”
Finally, Chaiwat Stawarawijit, People’s Party candidate for Bangkok governor, said, “We have heard about this issue throughout every era. Therefore, I think preventing and solving these problems requires understanding why position sales happen. They occur because the position can be used for personal gain. Prevention is the governor’s role, requiring determination, seriousness, firm political will, and systems to assist.”
“The People’s Party has a system called Bangkok Transparency AI to detect fraud. It is the governor’s duty to ensure all budget expenditures can be verified. If I become governor, the difference will be that all budget requests from the governor’s administration can be monitored by AI, which will check if there is rigging in specifications or inflated prices. This will enable the governor to prevent corruption at every step and stop the abuse of power for personal gain with the budget.”