Chiang Rai Teacher’s 8-Year Battle Over Alleged School Lunch Graft

CHIANG RAI – A veteran teacher is taking her fight to the provincial governor after an eight-year struggle to expose alleged corruption in a primary school lunch program in Wiang Kaen District.

Despite facing professional retaliation, disciplinary probes, and a forced transfer to another province, Kru Kalong Japsri, 51, successfully petitioned the Chiang Mai Administrative Court to order the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) to release its investigation files, a move she hopes will finally reveal why the initial graft complaint was dismissed.

The case centers on allegations of budget mismanagement and corruption involving the school lunch fund at a local school in Wiang Kaen District, Chiang Rai, between the fiscal years 2015 and 2017.

Kru Kalong first filed her complaint in 2018, accusing the former school director and several associates of siphoning funds intended for student meals to cover unrelated expenses.

While the accused officials have mostly retired and the affected students have long since graduated, Kalong continues her legal crusade to reclaim the rights and damages she believes are owed to the children.

A Whistleblower’s Heavy Price

Since raising the alarm in 2018, Kru Kalong’s life has been upended by what she describes as systemic retaliation. Following her initial reports to the Office of the Basic Education Commission (OBEC) and the provincial NACC, she faced:

Disciplinary Inquiries: She was placed under investigation by her superiors shortly after the complaint.
Professional Penalties: Her salary increases were suspended, and she was eventually transferred out of Chiang Rai to a school in Phu Sang District, Phayao Province.
Intimidation: Reports suggest that parents and students involved in the initial complaint were also subjected to threats to keep them silent.

The original complaint filed by Kalong included several pieces of evidence detailing how the lunch budget was allegedly misused. Key points in her report included:

Misallocation of Funds: Budget records from 2015–2017 showing meal money being used for unauthorized purposes.
Monthly “Kickbacks”: Claims that approximately 30,000 THB was deducted monthly from the full budget to serve as a “reserve fund” for other expenses, despite the school already receiving separate operational budgets.
Equipment Irregularities: Concerns over the procurement of student tracksuits, where students reportedly received only shirts while being forced to purchase trousers separately.

A Major Legal Breakthrough

After the NACC initially declined to pursue the case, citing a lack of evidence of criminal intent, Kalong refused to back down. She filed a lawsuit with the Chiang Mai Administrative Court seeking access to the NACC’s internal meeting minutes and investigation results.

On March 5, 2026, the court ruled in her favor, ordering the NACC to disclose the requested information. This ruling is a rare victory for transparency in local administration. However, anticipating a potential appeal by the NACC, Kalong is now preparing to submit a formal letter to Chiang Rai Governor Chuphip Pongchai via the Damrongdhama Center to ensure the court’s disclosure order is upheld.

For Kru Kalong, the battle is no longer just about the money; it is about the principle of protecting vulnerable students. “Even though many years have passed and the people involved have moved on or retired, the damage was done,” she stated. “As a teacher, I cannot let my students lose the rights they were entitled to.”

The case highlights the ongoing challenges faced by whistleblowers in the Thai civil service. As the investigation files are set to be opened, the community awaits to see if the eight-year-old evidence will finally lead to accountability for the missing lunch funds.