BANGKOK - THE governor of Thailand's capital Bangkok resigned on Wednesday after being accused of corruption over a 191-million-dollar (S$287.6 million) deal to buy fire engines and boats, part paid-for in broiled chicken.

Just a month after being re-elected, Mr Apirak Kosayodhin said he would step down from his post while an investigation was carried out into the four-year-old deal.

'I have decided to resign from the position of Bangkok governor... effective after (the king's sister's six-day funeral on) November 19,' he told a televised news conference. 'Time will prove that I'm innocent.'

The Electoral Commission said the city must swear in a new governor within 60 days.

Mr Apirak's announcement came after Thailand's main anti-corruption body found on Tuesday that he had breached anti-corruption laws by signing off on a 2004 deal to buy 315 firetrucks and 30 fire boats from Austrian firm Steyr Co.

The 6.68-billion-baht deal was first arranged by Mr Apirak's predecessor, Samak Sundaravej.

Samak went on to become prime minister, before he was forced to quit in September for accepting payment to appear in television cooking shows.

The deal was to be part-paid in Thai broiled chicken, but the meat is said to have never reached Austria; the vehicles were allegedly made in Thailand and not Austria as agreed, according to details of the case on the Thai parliamentary website.

The fire vehicles, allegedly shipped to Austria and then back to Thailand were also said to be overpriced. They remain locked up in a Bangkok port.

The case will now be referred to the Supreme Court to rule on criminal charges against Samak and Mr Apirak.

Mr Aprirak, the deputy head of the opposition Democrat Party, is in his second four-year term as Bangkok governor after winning an October 5 election with nearly 46 per cent of the vote.

He beat the candidate of the ruling People Power Party with the promise to improve the image of a city where anti-government protests have been dragging on for several months. -- AFP