COVID-19 vaccine is our last chance, say Phuket business leader

[rooster59]

COVID-19 vaccine is our last chance, say Phuket business leader

 

Image: PPTV36

 

A Phuket tourism leader has told the government that local organisations need to be able to procure vaccines against Covid themselves. 

 

Without this measure Phuket tourism is dead for ever. 

 

Phoomkit Raktaengam's comments come after earlier in the week local authorities were told that they could not sort out and pay for their own vaccine programs.

 

It would all be done centrally by the state. Many have criticized what they see as the slow rollout while tourism businesses are on their very last legs.

 

Phoomkit's letter on behalf of 14 organistaions in Phuket was sent to the provincial governor Narong Wunsew via the Ombudsman and copied to the prime minister. 

 

He said that drastic action was needed urgently or Phuket won't have a tourism industry to save come October 1st.

 

This has been a date put forward for a realistic return of foreign tourism. 

 

Talking to PPTV36 he likened the pandemic to a marathon with the finishing tape in sight saying he was prepared to do anything to get to the wire.

 

Admitting that tourism businesses are strapped for cash he didn't doubt that they would be prepared to come up with money for vaccines saying it was the only hope.

 

The tourism industry could bounce back, he said, with vaccination and an end to quarantine for tourists from abroad. 

 

"It's not too late, but it's the last chance for Phuket," he warned.

 

Source: PPTV36

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2021-02-13

 

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[NCC1701A]

"Honey look at that Family Mart and ugly power lines in Phuket. Lets go!" 

[10baht]

Drama Queens all of them.????

[Bob12345]

5 hours ago, rooster59 said:

local organisations need to be able to procure vaccines against Covid themselves

Arent they already?

Just give Pfizer a call and order 100,000 vacinations. Delivery might be by the end of the year, but you have the freedom to procure them yourself.

 

Guess what they are saying is that they want to put themselves at the front of the line when vaccinations really start in Thailand because... they are special?

[Mike Rodik]

som tam vaccine shots, that is about the max technology you can expect here

[cardinalblue]

Vaccination roll out will be the same as air pollution road safety helmet wearing drownings electrical safety waste management etc...

 

We know how this is going to end....Indonesia flying cones to mind...

[Destiny1990]

Should have pre- ordered vaccines instead of subs.

[redwood1]

So what happened to all the Tuk Tuk drivers that use to be everywhere in Phuket? 

[GeilGeilertzen]

Vultures get ready for cheap buildings and premesis once banks are starting their forced sales. 

[Millcx]

2 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

Should have pre- ordered vaccines instead of subs.

And Spaceships

[Dogmatix]

He is right because foreign tourists from vaccinated countries are not going to want to travel to unvaccinated countries like Thailand where an outbreak could occur at any moment and leave them stranded.  Sadly it is not practical for local authorities to order vaccines and the central government is operating a muddled day by day approach that is unlikely to result in an acceptable level of vaccination before the end of 2022.  

 

Bye bye Phuket tourism.

[Destiny1990]

3 hours ago, redwood1 said:

So what happened to all the Tuk Tuk drivers that use to be everywhere in Phuket? 

Hopefully that lot went back into rice farming and keep doing that forever.????

[Elkski]

Thai pride once again got in the way.   

They were so happy about low virus and the talk of masses of tourists being tricked into coming was always just 2 months away for the last 8 months.  Sas thing is GF has already been brainwashed.  She says they did this for safety.  Government not wanting to buy a  untested  or new vaccine. Only thinking of the people's health.      

My opinion is they thought sino was going to be ok if they even needed one. 

Then the Astra Z deal and then all searching was stopped.   Now AZ looking worthless against SA variant so oh <deleted>.   I'm sure the top docs are afraid to say what they really think. 

[Bradmeister]

October 1st of which year?  He doesn't mean this year right.

 

5 years at least; and that's only if the strains stop mutating now, and the double and (new to be released ) single jab from J&J are as effective as everyone would like to believe.

[Peterphuket]

4 hours ago, redwood1 said:

So what happened to all the Tuk Tuk drivers that use to be everywhere in Phuket? 

They ask so much money for a ride before....

They survive the whole world, I wonder of they still stay  at Phuket, maybe they have a long holiday at the Maladives.

[Dogmatix]

18 minutes ago, Elkski said:

Thai pride once again got in the way.   

They were so happy about low virus and the talk of masses of tourists being tricked into coming was always just 2 months away for the last 8 months.  Sas thing is GF has already been brainwashed.  She says they did this for safety.  Government not wanting to buy a  untested  or new vaccine. Only thinking of the people's health.      

My opinion is they thought sino was going to be ok if they even needed one. 

Then the Astra Z deal and then all searching was stopped.   Now AZ looking worthless against SA variant so oh <deleted>.   I'm sure the top docs are afraid to say what they really think. 

 

 

If they delayed vaccinations for safety and didn't want to buy an untested vaccine, why are they importing the Sinovac vaccine?  Sinovac published stage 1 and 2 trial results in the Lancet, a credible peer reviewed journal but has not published results of the all important Stage 3 trials which would show efficacy.  Why not?  Without this evidence it is regarded in the West as an untested vaccine, since the results are  unverified. 

[zhounan]

Abandon all hope, ye who enter

[DogNo1]

A Thai Government spokesman has said that it is unlikely that vaccinations will lead to entry without quarantining.  This appeared on Thai Visa a few days ago.  Phuket tourism leaders seem to be assuming the opposite.  

[redwood1]

8 minutes ago, DogNo1 said:

A Thai Government spokesman has said that it is unlikely that vaccinations will lead to entry without quarantining.  This appeared on Thai Visa a few days ago.  Phuket tourism leaders seem to be assuming the opposite.  

People are just not getting that there are some people that are thrilled with the situation in Phuket.....The more bankruptcies and the more poor and desperate people the better...They want to buy it all up for as little as possible...They want dirt cheap prices....And eventually they will get them....

 

 

 

[SupermarineS6B]

Dream on, as long as there's a shadow of doubt in any of the vaccines the government's not going to drop all it's money spinning quarantine requirements, there's too much money in it for them and their mates, who by the way own the golf courses as well..... None of the vaccines are a 100% guaranteed, but it's going to take a lot of outside pressure before the government release its death grip on the country, and the people in the tourist resorts would be better off giving uncle Tuu a good tongue lashing as to their dire situation.....   We all know what the lads at the top think about farangs and they're not going to bust their butt risking anything for them,  and definetely not putting themselves in any danger...... Nope, they're enjoying finally getting rid of those pesky farangs and what's left they'll slowly torture with a multitude of hoops to jump through before they've finally had enough and leave....  Then the Chinese dream will be back on in full scale just as before the C19 pandemic turned up........ Unless the lads go as with others in the past, Thailand for farangs has a very bleak future along with all its tourist destinations.......   

Edited February 13, 2021 by SupermarineS6B

[hioctane]

6 hours ago, Bob12345 said:

Arent they already?

Just give Pfizer a call and order 100,000 vacinations. Delivery might be by the end of the year, but you have the freedom to procure them yourself.

 

Guess what they are saying is that they want to put themselves at the front of the line when vaccinations really start in Thailand because... they are special?

 

They don’t have the freedom to get it themselves.  Like any drug you want to import, it is subject to the rules and regulations of the government.

 

They are suggesting the government is moving at a snail’s pace. By June most developed nations will be vaccinated by >50% and Thailand will be just beginning.

[Jingthing]

He's not wrong per se but it's so much bigger than that.

Yes, things are slow here and in much of the world related to the dreaded vaccine nationalism.

So richer countries are now going full steam ahead but they've bought a false sense of security.

As much of the rest of the world is far behind, that leaves time for even worse mutations to develop that won't be covered by current vaccines. 

Speed is of the essence. Vaccinate locally. Vaccinate globally. 

[bangon04]

6 hours ago, GeilGeilertzen said:

Vultures get ready for cheap buildings and premesis once banks are starting their forced sales. 

Just give Phuket to the Chinese in lieu of national debt - a few really big casinos will put it back on the tourist map.

[NNNN]

Do not take any vaccines before the WEF and higher elite are stopped! 

[hotchilli]

20 hours ago, rooster59 said:

This has been a date put forward for a realistic return of foreign tourism. 

Thailand can prepare itself as much as it wants, but it depends on whether tourist have the cash, opportunity or the will to come back.

[Pancho]

Let’s make sure this guys children get the first jab.

[IamNoone88]

"while tourism businesses are on their very last legs". They have passed that stage already. Tourism is dead - period.

 

[NoshowJones]

19 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

Should have pre- ordered vaccines instead of subs.

What about moon rockets and the soldier "government"s lining of pockets? All that will probably have to happen before vaccines.

[pokerface1]

14 hours ago, Jingthing said:

As much of the rest of the world is far behind, that leaves time for even worse mutations to develop that won't be covered by current vaccines. 

Speed is of the essence. Vaccinate locally. Vaccinate globally. 

The world will be like a dog chasing it's tail if the poorer countries are lagging behind in the vaccinations. Hence we will all suffer if countries don't share any surplus vaccine with them in a timely manner. Being unable to keep up with new mutations would then lead to yearly jabs just to keep up with the latest strain. ( what a pain that would be)

By Thailand and other poorer countries starting their vaccination programs so late they are jeopardizing the speedy recovery of the global economy and of course tourism as we once knew it.

Hear immunity on a global scale won't occur for at least 6 years is the latest estimate.

 

Australia will provide $80 million to the COVAX Facility Advance Market Commitment (COVAX AMC) to improve access to safe, effective and affordable COVID-19 vaccines for 92 countries in our region and around the world.

Countries eligible for vaccines from the COVAX AMC in the Pacific include Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia. Southeast Asian eligible countries are Indonesia, Timor-Leste, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines and Vietnam.

 

Thailand is not on the list of eligible countries I wonder why not?

 

 

[DogNo1]

The longer that the virus survives and replicates on a huge scale, the more likely it is that troublesome variants will emerge.  That may require the vaccines to be modified to remain effective. Probably very costly.