The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has asked police to arrest the mastermind behind a website that falsely claimed Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha told people frustrated at surging fuel prices to use water.
NCPO legal team chief Col Burin Thongpraphai yesterday gave officers a cropped photo of a webpage with the distorted comment of Gen Prayut and 12 other documents.
The comment was aimed at confusing people by saying Gen Prayut has become angry at disgruntled people after diesel prices rose by 3.82 baht a litre in one day. The prime minister allegedly told them to stop complaining and "fill their cars with water".
The NCPO is worried false information will instigate problems and affect national security, he said.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon have prompted "all security agencies" to keep a close watch on false information and act against wrongdoers.
"People should carefully check the news they read," he said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Energy Minister Siri Jirapongphan said Gen Prayut was "very concerned" about the impact of rising fuel costs over the past two months.
