Top official describes the popular ‘Test and Go’ entry as a loophole exposing Thailand to Omicron

[paul1804]

Reading various responses to the Doctor's "Loop Hole" theory shows people have had enough of these supposed experts that have no idea of a balance between safety and the economic well being of the country. Omicron is here and no matter what they do it is going to infect many in Thailand, citizens & non citizens alike. The Sandbox's in the various tourist areas is a cautious way forward, test & go should be reinstated in those Sandbox regions if Thailand wants to rectify its current economic woes. Many have suffered severe hardships, individuals, families & businesses all struggling due to Covid and somewhat over cautious lockdowns. On the other hand some establishments have completely ignored liquor restrictions & lock downs and being "well connected" been allowed to operate illegally so the need for sensible perimeters that are enforced are also essential. 

[LivinLOS]

7 hours ago, Daithi85 said:

Why do u keep saying their locking everybody up? Mandatory quarantine is no longer been enforced. Home isolation is the new Go for people who with no symptoms or mild.Things are completely different here this time round,no lockdowns, no curfews.

on phuket they have given up.. Elsewhere its still up to the local authorities, as ever theres no single policy or clarity. 

[Bangkok Barry]

1 hour ago, Mr Meeseeks said:

Get your plan b ready and your suitcases packed. 

 

I can very well see a pogrom against expats and long staying foreigners if he ever gets to be PM.

Me too. I can very well see that within a few years Thailand will close its doors to outsiders, as China and Japan have done in the past. It is impossible to remove the people in charge now after the government re-wrote the constitution to ensure it always has the backing of its military friends. As Thailand has anyway always had little interest in the outside world, closing the country off would not be a problem to its citizens.

 

My fantasy of what would happen then is that everything not invented by Thais would cease to function. No electricity, no tv, no cars, no phones, no internet, no trains, no planes - nothing at all.

 

It's a problem though for those of us who have family here. If wives or children had to choose between Thai family and their 'dirty, smelly, diseased' farang, we all know which way in many cases they would lean and whether or not they'd join you outside of the lunatic asylum.

[fondue zoo]

7 hours ago, geisha said:

Honestly , the world saw that video, it was a horrifying example of lack of hygiene!! The best possible  place to catch Covid, not on an airplane or in a bar, just in an isolation unit .

 

????  Why does dirty harry have his hand on his holster in the left side image, I actually did lol/snort at that one.

       You you got to ask yourself, do you feel flu 'y, will do ya punk?

[Rimmer]

A misleadimg troll post has been removed

[Stefanix]

I understand that they want to slow down the spread of Omicron. The target is to identify infected incoming travelers. If one test on arrival results in a too low recognition rate, maybe something like 2 days would do. This would still be tolerable for most travelers. But what is the rate of slip-throughs? Do we even have any clear figures?

[jacko45k]

1 hour ago, Mr Meeseeks said:

The Omicron variant would have got here eventually and spread anyway. 

With the introduction of Test and Go, shortly followed by allowing all 'restaurants' to serve alcohol, and continued action in Treetown, it almost looked planned.

[Dibbler]

If Test and Go is a loophole for Omicron transmission by foreign tourists then The Second Govt House on Tonglor, cross border smuggling points at Mai Sai, Phu Nam Ron, Myawaddy, Poi Pet, Mukdahan, and Sungai Kolok, illegal gambling dens, boxing & cock fighting matches, and slavery fishing port in Samut Sakon are the COVID pass-and-self-infect loopholes they are conveniently ignoring.

[John Drake]

8 hours ago, DonniePeverley said:

This was literally last week, and countless other tourists being sent to hospitals (or isolation units). 

Countless????

[kimamey]

4 hours ago, snowgard said:

Wow, if you walk around Pattaya you can see that almost 50% of the Farang population also give a <deleted> about all laws, including the Covid-19 rules. They are no better than Thais. ????????

What I find absolutely inconsiderate is that most farangs are of an age in which they are at risk for Covid-19 but they walk around everywhere without a mask, meet in groups, drink and have fun, ... !!! ????????????

And the police do absolutely nothing. ???? I thought there was a fine of 6,000 Baht for "Don't wear a mask"! And then the cops cry in the news that they have no money and high debts! I wish they would do their job and get filthy rich in Pattaya. ???????????? 

Looks like a lot old Farangs want a great "Last Stop Thailand" before they die of Covid-19. ????

You're probably right.

Where I am, or was until September 2020 you'd be lucky to see a farang apart from sometimes in the shopping mall.  Mask wearing did seem to be better there amongst Thais.

[sawadee1947]

11 hours ago, TooMuchTime said:

They need to immediately round up all foreigners and put them in isolation camps.

 

isolation camps ?????

Why not concentration Camps, barbed wire around.

[Ty Hareways]

12 hours ago, TooMuchTime said:

They need to immediately round up all foreigners and put them in isolation camps.

 

...and kill them if they test positive after a months isolation.

[Jimjim1]

9 hours ago, ezzra said:

So the good doctor premise is that tourists are to blame fro the Omicron infestation yes? so which is it sir? your country want tourists or not? lord only knows the hops and loops that tourists must jump through to come to Thailand so it is either shut the borders completely or learn to mange and live with the pandemic...

I agree with you and also point out that the government is missing a very big point in all of this, It was proven shortly after the first case of Covid19 that it can survive for several days on cardboard and even longer on stainless steel, yet millions of boxes are imported into Thailand every week from the land of the Covid invention which is now largely under severe lockdown whilst continuing to manufacture, package and export in cardboard boxes to every country around the world.

Doesn’t take much to understand where the main infections are coming from and it is NOT entirely down to tourists so isn’t it time to stop blaming and restricting us?

we get a test before we get on the plane and we get a test when we get off it, that should be more than enough.

 

[kiwikeith]

7 hours ago, Harveyboy said:

with a bar..and sexy issaan girls ..ok I'm ready

Me to

 

[kiwikeith]

34 minutes ago, Jimjim1 said:

I agree with you and also point out that the government is missing a very big point in all of this, It was proven shortly after the first case of Covid19 that it can survive for several days on cardboard and even longer on stainless steel, yet millions of boxes are imported into Thailand every week from the land of the Covid invention which is now largely under severe lockdown whilst continuing to manufacture, package and export in cardboard boxes to every country around the world.

Doesn’t take much to understand where the main infections are coming from and it is NOT entirely down to tourists so isn’t it time to stop blaming and restricting us?

we get a test before we get on the plane and we get a test when we get off it, that should be more than enough.

 

And thousand of Burmese were smuggled into LOS infected, and girl workers walked back and forth from Masai into Tachilek after working with immigration  and police officers, wow and they were immune!!!!

[TKDfella]

8 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

I also heard from my Daughter yesterday of this so called  "Hybrid " Variant that was located in Cyprus.

However, I have seen no such reports on BBC or any other News Channel of this reported find.

Anutin did mention that Omicron, and Delta, were both on the increase here in Thailand.  - Again, it was Anutin speaking

Are they combined into this " Hybrid " Variant. ?

We will have to wait and see. I for one certainly hope not.

 

 

Have just read this https://www.news18.com/news/explainers/explained-new-variant-or-lab-error-what-you-need-to-know-about-deltacron-4640063.html

or WHO says it's lab contamination https://www.nationalworld.com/health/coronavirus/is-deltacron-real-verdict-on-new-covid-strain-that-combines-delta-and-omicron-detected-in-cyprus-3520806

????

[ArcticFox]

13 hours ago, webfact said:

On Friday, it was described by Dr Taweesilp Visanuyothin of the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) as a ‘loophole’ that left Thailand vulnerable to the Omicron virus storm now brewing.

 

Absolutely correct.  And after Omicron will come Pi, and after Pi will come........well, you get the picture.
Close that "loophole" permanently and protect Thailand from the threat of outsider vermin coming and contaminating pure Thais.
Shut the borders to all but the rich.  The rich are all clean.

[ArcticFox]

1 hour ago, Jimjim1 said:

 It was proven shortly after the first case of Covid19 that it can survive for several days on cardboard and even longer on stainless steel, yet millions of boxes are imported into Thailand every week from the land of the Covid invention which is now largely under severe lockdown whilst continuing to manufacture, package and export in cardboard boxes to every country around the world.

Doesn’t take much to understand where the main infections are coming from and it is NOT entirely down to tourists so isn’t it time to stop blaming and restricting us?

 

Trust the science, well, unless it's inconvenient to your narrative.  It's best to spread fear.  You can ever can be too safe. Covid will get you.

Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) studies have been conducted to understand and characterize the relative risk of SARS-CoV-2 fomite transmission and evaluate the need for and effectiveness of prevention measures to reduce risk. Findings of these studies suggest that the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection via the fomite transmission route is low, and generally less than 1 in 10,000, which means that each contact with a contaminated surface has less than a 1 in 10,000 chance of causing an infection

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/science-and-research/surface-transmission.html

[joecoolfrog]

13 hours ago, DonniePeverley said:

Countries with their borders sealed are still seeing massive omicron waves. 

 

Thailand's borders are not sealed - they have porous boders into Mynamar, which are in turn porous into India. India is seeing a massive wave of Omicron infections at the moment, and this will eventually seep into Myanmar and then into Thailand. 

 

Targetting tourism (which is vital for the Thai economy) is low grade xenophobia playing to the crowd. 

 

Thailand are treating this new Omicron wave just like the original variant. You cannot do this. You have 300,000 daily cases in France, 480,000 cases in the USA, 200,000 cases in Italy - you can't lock this many people up daily. Targetting tourism is like cutting of your nose to spite your face. 

 

What is the end game here then? Just seal borders forever?

The fact that no jounalists , let alone politicians , feel secure enough to raise these very pertinent issues , sums up the current ills of the nation.

[NoshowJones]

11 hours ago, Kerryd said:

Typical gov't "doublespeak".

On one hand they are saying the "Test and Go" program is "very popular" and on the other hand (one paragraph above) they are saying that 87% of tourists are rejecting their "Sandbox" schemes.

Good thing they don't mention how "popular" their various "let's only try and attract the richest people in the world to come here and stay in their hotel for 2 weeks before going home again" schemes. 
Might look bad to admit that they are probably being rejected by 99.9% of the people they were hoping to attract.

I have said this before and I will keep on saying it, this soldiers government has no more intelligence than the ordinary Somchai and Lek in the street. they would be better letting the country get run by real politicians, and going back to their barracks and parade grounds.

[NoshowJones]

10 hours ago, rwill said:

How about proposing all alcohol must be at least 70% so it will kill the virus.

What about ladydrinks then?

[bangon04]

2 hours ago, Ty Hareways said:

...and kill them if they test positive after a months isolation.

noooo  be reasonable....only kill them when their money runs out....

[racket]

Are there any businesses still alive in Thailand these days? 

[DonniePeverley]

14 hours ago, brommers said:

Seems like this spokesman would like to see Thailand follow the Chinese example of total lockdown and isolation. This strategy will fail in time because the vaccines used in China are well nigh useless against Omicron so the population has no induced or aquired immunity. So once the variant has spread, as it is already doing, to cities across China there will be an almighty epidemic. And Thailand having used so much Chinese junk is highly vulnerable to a similar out of control explosion of new infections. Anutin's chickens are coming home to roost.

 Then Thailand better start handing out payments to people to stay at home, because that is what they are doing in the west and China. Payments for closed business, payments to industries effected, payments to the entertainment industry and their staff so they can resume when things open. 

 

If these payments were not given in the west and China, then people wouldn't have accepted the lockdowns. 

 

Thailand has given virtually nothing away to it's population.

[ThailandGuy]

16 hours ago, DonniePeverley said:

 

 

This was literally last week, and countless other tourists being sent to hospitals (or isolation units). 

You don't want to be there. What a fracking mess is this!  This is not tourist friendly. No way i am gonna visit Thialand under such conditions.

[n00dle]

Dont they realize that it was overafter the first case of omnicron hit thai shores undetected?

 

[n00dle]

14 hours ago, Bim Smith said:

No one remember who brought the delta variant into the country. Those untested diplomats treated to hiso nightclubs at the governments expense in BKK. 

I heard it was the english.

[SiSePuede419]

There did appear to be a "loophole" at BKK airport on Xmas day...

 

Men with camouflage backpacks arriving from Istanbul and who knows where else were waived through the lines checking for vaccinations, Negative PCR test and SHA hotel booking.

 

Thai army soldiers, I presume? ????

[Jimjim1]

6 hours ago, kiwikeith said:

And thousand of Burmese were smuggled into LOS infected,

Is there proof of this , or is it heresay fake news again?

I am not in Thailand so I don’t know if true or not but if it is true why is there such a low count of infected and dead Thais, surely if thousands were smuggled in, multi thousands more would have been infected.

[metisdead]

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