But the way things are going it appears that the 39 may have a reprieve of at least a week.
All 39 were sent notice to quit by registered mail and the notices were also posted on each of the premises they occupy on March 19, giving them 30 days – until tomorrow – to get out.
Each business was informed that it could appeal to the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor) within 15 days of receiving the order to quit. All 39 did.
A lawyer for Cherngtalay OrBorTor, asking not to be named, explained to The Phuket News this morning that not all the orders will take effect from tomorrow.
“We sent the letters and, to make sure that they received the order, put notices on their buildings telling them to move within 30 days. However, each place may be different.
“If they are recorded as receiving the letter earlier than March 19, we will count the 30 days only from March 19.
“But if they [are recorded as] receiving the letter later than March 19 we will calculate [the quit date] from the day they received the letter – though not more than seven days from March 19,” the lawyer said.
In other words, the deadline for some may be stretched until April 25, but not later.
“The chief executive [of the OrBorTor, Ma’an Samran] gave them a chance to file an appeal to him within 15 days of receiving the notice, explaining their legal right to stay.
“However, he considered the appeals and rejected them all. Now, the appeals have been sent to the Governor for a final decision.”
Governor Nisit Jansomwong told The Phuket News that the matter was in fact being handled by the Provincial Appeal Committee, chaired by Vice-Governor Somkiet Sangkhaosuthirak.
But V/Gov Somkiet said the committee had not considered any of the cases because “I have not yet received the appeals.”
“Normally, the Chief of the Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning, Phuket branch (DPT) is the secretary of the committee, and he would have received the appeal letters if the OrBorTor had sent them to us.
“It will take around a week to finish considering the appeals once the DPT has filed them with the committee,” he added.
The Phuket News next got hold of the assistant to the DPT Chief, who said that the appeal papers have not yet been received from the OrBorTor.
However, the Secretary of the OrBorTor said the papers had been sent to the Local Administration Office at Provincial Hall, where a staffer said the papers had been received but the person who would know about all of this is currently on holiday.
Just where the papers are right now is not clear. But this does mean the 39 businesses have a small breathing space to continue making money.
And if the appeals are turned down by the Phuket Appeals Committee, the 39 can still take their case to the Administrative Court within 30 days, which is well known for its very thorough, in-depth examination of cases.