Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will lead a new committee to steer efforts in tackling narcotics problems in the wake of last week's mass shooting at a childcare centre in Nong Bua Lam Phu.
Gen Prayut told the cabinet meeting on Tuesday that the use of illegal drugs played a significant role in events leading up to the mass shooting by former Pol Sgt Panya Khamrab which claimed 36 lives -- 24 of whom were children, said government spokesman Anucha Buraphachaisri.
The ex-policeman had a history of drug abuse and was found guilty by a disciplinary investigation and expelled from the force in June following his arrest in January for methamphetamine possession.
