The prime minister has said she is satisfied with the results of a crackdown on e-cigarettes, but says authorities need to get tough on online channels.
Posting on the platform X yesterday, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra vowed to get tough on e-cigarettes, or vaping, which she called "the people's big misery".
"In the two weeks since I ordered the crackdown, the statistics show an improvement," said the prime minister.
"There are 1,078 cases involving 1,104 defendants being processed and 900,444 confiscated items worth 118,953,915 baht," she said.
Her social media post came after a meeting Ms Paetongtarn chaired on the issue, attended by Prime Minister's Office Minister Jiraporn Sindhuprai and the Royal Thai Police (RTP) on the progress of raids and seizures.
The prime minister posted on X that urgent issues included cross-border smuggling of vaping equipment and easy access to vapes on social media.
"What I shared during the meeting concerned e-cigarettes that have been modified to contain narcotic substances. Many people use vapes as an item to consume drugs, and this might be the beginning of drug addiction among youths," she said.
Ms Jiraporn said after the meeting that the crackdown statistics over the past two weeks were similar to those for all of 2024.
"No offenders, big or small, will be spared," she said. "Large-scale operators will face legal action, while smaller sellers will be traced back to major suppliers."
Ms Jiraporn said the crackdown was a joint effort between the RTP, Ministry of Interior, Office of the Consumer Protection Board, and the Customs Department. The Anti-Money Laundering Office was in charge of investigating confiscated items worth 500,000 baht or more, with items of lower value dealt with by the police.
Over 9,000 online sales channels have been closed down.