The deputy director-general of the Corrections Department Sitthi Sutheewong (second from right) at the press conference. - The Nation
BANGKOK (The Nation/Asia News Network): The Corrections Department said on Tuesday (Aug 22) afternoon that former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra was isolated inside the Bangkok Remand Prison’s hospital after doctors diagnosed him with four co-morbidities.
Thaksin was taken to the Bangkok Remand Prison immediately after he was read his jail sentences in three convictions by the Supreme Court earlier in the day.
The announcement was made by Aryut Sintopphan, director-general of the Corrections Department, at 12.45pm.
Aryut said the department would ensure Thaksin’s safety inside the prison.
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He said the Bangkok Remand Prison would have to designate a special building or space for relatives and supporters to visit the former prime minister.
As Thaksin is aged — he turned 74 last month — he will have to be taken good care of so that he does not fall ill during his detention, the director-general added.
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He said that prison officials have made a record of Thaksin as a new inmate and doctors of the prison hospital have checked his health.
Sitthi Sutheewong, deputy director-general of the Corrections Department, said doctors of the prison hospital found that Thaksin was vulnerable to ill health as he had co-morbidities and needed to be continually monitored by doctors.
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As a result, the prison decided to detain Thaksin alone in Zone 7, which is the hospital of the Bangkok Remand Prison where he would be monitored by medical staff around the clock, Sitthi added.
According to Sitthi, Thaksin has the following illnesses:
▪︎ Ischemia, a heart condition in which blood flow is restricted and doctors need to prescribe anti-blood-clotting drugs to him regularly.
▪︎ He has had severe lung infections because of Covid. Although he has been cured, his lungs still have adhesion, causing him to feel tired easily.
▪︎ Thaksin suffers from hypertension and needs to take medicines regularly because of high blood pressure.
▪︎ He has been suffering from degenerative spine and herniated discs, which have affected his balance and walk.
