Thailand Live Monday 23 Apr 2012

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Thailand Live Monday 23 April 2012

News, Bits and Tweets

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Keep up to date with live updates from the news, hour by hour.

For breaking news, national, regional and international news updates on a daily basis only, this thread is closed to commentary so that those who wish to follow the news can find it here...

Commentary is still open for Thailand news in the relevant thread posted in News Clippings.

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Related topic: Thailand Live Sunday 22 Apr 2012

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Pheu Thai blames poll loss on flood policies

PATHUM THANI: -- The Pheu Thai Party believed it lost Sunday's by-election in Pathum Thani to the Opposition Democrat Party because of last year's catastrophic flood.

Full story:

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BY ELECTION

Chiang Mai by-poll a must in 45 days: EC

Chinicha (L) and her father, Somchai

CHIANG MAI: -- The Election Commission is duty-bound to organise the Chiang Mai by-election within 45 days to fill the House seat vacated by former Pheu Thai MP Chinnicha Wongsawat, EC member Sodsri Satayathum said yesterday.

Full story:

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PUBLIC HEALTH

Thai govt's emergency treatment plan runs into payment, bed-shortage problems

BANGKOK: -- Many patients have not been able to access the government's new plan to provide unlimited emergency medical treatment since the scheme was launched on April 1.

Full story:

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MAP TA PHUT

Map Ta Phut coal plant faces review over pricing

RAYONG: -- Energy authorities have a big decision to make involving BLCP Power, the operator of a coal-fired power plant in Rayong.

Full story:

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CABINET

More cash sought to fight smog

Piyanart Srivalo

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Natural Resources and Environment Ministry will today request Cabinet approval for Bt20 million to hire 1,000 more workers to bring the raging northern smog under control, a source said yesterday.

Since early February, heavy haze has hit the northern region and posed health hazards to humans in several provinces.

In Chiang Rai, dust particles smaller than 10 microns have been measured at 437.6 micrograms per cubic metre, which is beyond the safe limit of 120 micrograms within a 24-hour period.

The air pollution has scared away visitors and hurt the tourism, social and economic sectors.

The smoke has been blamed on poachers setting forests on fire to collect wildlife or organisms or products from the wild and farmers' burning fields after the harvest to prepare for planting their next crop. Plantation fires have been spotted in both agricultural and forest areas.

A survey of eight northern provinces - Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Mae Hong Son, Phayao, Lampang, Lamphun, Phrae and Nan - found that hotspots had tripled from the same season last year.

The ministry has been attacking the problem with 31 permanent stations to contain bush fires, 98 mobile fire-fighting units and 1,400 firemen and local volunteers, but it persists especially in the upper North.

-- The Nation 2012-04-23

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POLITICS

PM to pay Songkran respects to Prem

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra |will lead her ministers on Thursday |to pay belated respects for Songkran |to elder statesman Prem Tinsulanonda.

"Yingluck has sought and received permission to pay homage to Prem on the occasion of the Thai New Year," Admiral Pajun Tamprattep, and aide to General Prem, who is president of the Privy Council, said yesterday.

The visitors would perform the Songkran ceremony of pouring scented water over Prem's hands.

Another aide, General Pongthep Thesprateep, said it was routine for |well wishers to pay a courtesy call |to Prem as part of the Songkran festivities and the meeting would be non-political.

-- The Nation 2012-04-23

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STREET WISE

Social media - a milestone in news reporting history?

BANGKOK: -- Nearly 10 years ago, Thais first experienced the true power of popular votes for the first time.

Full story:

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Girlie picture in Thai parliament: Ombudsman petitioned to investigate

BANGKOK: -- Activist Ruangkrai Leekitwattana has petitioned the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate and determine whether Democrat MP Nutt Bantadtan violated the ethical code following his use of a smartphone to view a girlie picture during a parliamentary session.

Full story:

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'EC should have power to assess CDA nominees'

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Election Commission should have the power to disqualify candidates for the Constitution Drafting Assembly to foil any fraud attempts, a EC member said yesterday.

"If the EC has no mandate to issue red and yellow cards, then there's no way to guarantee fairness in the CDA election," Prapun Naigowit said.

Lawmakers have been debating the format to elect 77 CDA members by direct vote, while the other 22 seats will be filled by academics and professionals picked by Parliament.

Parliament has yet to decide which of the two existing polling laws - one for local administrations and the other for Parliament - to be adopted for the CDA balloting.

Prapun said the EC had no preference but he was concerned about speculation that Parliament might cut out provisions on disqualification to streamline the CDA's establishment.

Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said his main opposition party would support the application of the rules for electing senators to the CDA election.

The 77 elected CDA representatives should be non-partisan and the rules for electing senators would ensure that, he said.

For the 22 appointed drafters, the charter amendment bill should allow academic institutions to nominate scholars and professionals instead of allowing the Parliament president to screen them, he said.

Each MP and senator should vote on only five or six candidates instead of the full slate of 22 to prevent any political party from dominating the CDA, he said.

When the charter rewrite is completed, it should be vetted by Parliament on its constitutionality and not by its president alone, he said.

The charter draft should be debated in Parliament before the holding of the referendum on it, he said.

Pheu Thai Party spokesman Prompong Nopparit said his ruling party would continue to allow a free debate on the charter amendment bill when Parliament resumes the second reading tomorrow.

"Pheu Thai will not try to block the discussion although the Democrat Party is trying to delay the passage of the bill," he said.

The six days devoted to debating the bill last week is proof that the coalition is not rushing the legislation as alleged by the Democrats, he added.

-- The Nation 2012-04-23

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Jail chief transferred as officials raid Thai prison

NAKHON SI THAMMARAT: -- More than 600 officials yesterday made a predawn surprise search at the Nakhon Si Thammarat Central Prison in their bid to stop this correctional facility from being a base for drug-trafficking gangs.

Full story:

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Database will check hospitals' drug stocks

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Public Health Ministry is developing a real-time drug database for all hospitals under its supervision as a measure to better control its drug inventory.

"The real-time system will be completed next year," Public Health Ministry deputy permanent secretary Dr Sopon Mekthon said yesterday.

He said his ministry had been developing this database in collaboration with the Information and Communication Technology Ministry.

Earlier this year, it was exposed that millions of pseudoephedrine-containing medicines have been embezzled from state hospitals and they might have ended up in the hands of drug-trafficking gangs.

Pseudoephedrine is a precursor chemical for the production of methamphetamine.

Sopon said of 845 hospitals under the ministry's supervision, only eight had been implicated in the pseudoephedrine scandal.

"This means our drug-inventory management is largely effective. We only need to tighten our control of the drug inventory and solve any existing problems," he said.

Sopon said Public Health Ministry permanent secretary Dr Paijit Warachit has already instructed all hospitals to strictly enforce the nine rules for the control of drug/medical supply inventory.

Among them are that hospitals must not keep supplies larger than what are needed for a three-month period, and the use of expensive medicines must be closely monitored. Also, reports on the drug inventories must be compiled and submitted to supervisors on a regular basis.

The measures are designed to better control the use of medicines and medical supplies at state hospitals.

"We will enforce them strictly in response to the government's policy to control medical costs," Paijit said.

-- The Nation 2012-04-23

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EDUCATION

Small Primary Thai School became a winner

Once a failure, 109 now ranks in South's top 10

NARATHIWAT: -- Believe it or not, a small primary school with only eight teachers is among the top ten excellent schools in the three restive southern provinces.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....ecame-a-winner/

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Thai hospitals face staff shortages ahead of AEC

Private facilities team up with medical, nursing schools in Kingdom and abroad to train, recruit medical workers

BANGKOK: -- Private hospitals urgently need to recruit medical workers, including nurses and physicians, in a bid to strengthen their businesses and prepare for the intense competition in the healthcare industry expected when the Asean Economic Community (AEC) becomes effective in 2015.

Full story:

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Pattaya Drug Dealing Brit-Cum English Teacher Arrested

Chonburi police arrested an English teacher, British nationality, a ya-ice dealer. The suspect was arrested in a rental room in Pattaya

PATTAYA – April 22, 2012 [PDN]; Pol. Capt. Suphan Jaiharn, Pattaya police and detectives arrested Mr. Steven Palmer age 42, British national working as an English teacher at famous school, Amphur Sattahip, Chonburi.

Full story:

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Thai stock index opens on Monday at 1,198.44, up 3.84 points /MCOT

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Krabi authority prepared for unpredictable weather

KRABI, 23 April 2012 (NNT) – Although flashfloods in Krabi, which occurred on Sunday, have subsided; authorities are prepared for the unpredictable weather.

The province has recently declared 3 Sub-districts in Muang District as flood disaster zones. Local officials remain vigilant over the water level in canals, even though it has gone down.

Heavy rain on Sunday caused flashfloods in Muang District, but the situation has returned to normal and all of the roads are functional.

Summer storms which have been battering many areas of the country have damaged a number of homes and buildings, particularly in Buriram province, where some homes in five villages have been destroyed by the storm, leaving many people homeless.

-- NNT 2012-04-23

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Hatyai Cable Car Cancels its Services Temporarily

HAT YAI: -- The Hatyai Municipality has temporarily cancelled its cable car services to inspect the electrical system after a power supply exploded on Saturday, causing the cable cars to remain suspended in midair for three hours.

Assistant electrical engineer of the Hatyai Cable Car, Passakorn Intarachot, disclosed that the Nakhon Hatyai Municipality Cable Car station on Kor Hong Mountain in Songkhla's Hatyai District has cancelled its services yesterday.

Investigators found that a large power supply at the Tao Mahaprom Station, which supplies electricity to the cable cars, has exploded on Saturday.

This has caused the cable cars to remain suspended in midair for three hours, with tourists aboard.

Officers were forced to manually use winch cables to pull the cable cars back to the station. Fortunately, all passengers were rescued safely.

As of now, a reserve power supply will be used at the Tao Mahaprom Station to prevent the problem from reoccurring.

Cable car services are expected to resume within two to three days.

Hatyai Cable Car was first opened for service since December 5, 2011.

This new attraction spans across 530 meters and traverses over the Phra Buddha Mongkon Maharaj Buddha Image and the Lord Brahma Shrine situated atop the mountain parks.

-- Tan Network 2012-04-23

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Education Ministry asks China to send in 10,000 teachers

BANGKOK, 23 April 2012 (NNT) – The Education Ministry has asked for cooperation from the Chinese government to send in 10,000 teachers to teach the Chinese language to Thai students, while, in reciprocity, Thai teachers will also be sent to China to teach the Thai language.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....10000-teachers/

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Thai Land Transport Dept to Crack Down Taxis Without Driving License By May 1

BANGKOK: -- The Land Transport Department will initiate a crackdown on taxi drivers who do not have a valid driving license by this upcoming May 1st, as they found out that more than 20 percent out of the 120,000 registered cabs are not formally registered.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....cense-by-may-1/

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Meteorological Dept expects hot weather throughout Thailand until mid-May; no tremors felt in Phuket last night /TANN

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Interior Minister: 48 provinces declared drought-hit disaster zone; governors assigned to tackle problem, assist affected residents /MCOT

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RT @mpoppel: North Korea says it will soon start 'special actions' of armed forces against SKorea; says it will destroy SKorean bases

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Bangkok to Suffer from Scorching Hot Weather

BANGKOK: -- The Weather Department deputy director-general disclosed that there will be one or two rainy days in Bangkok but the weather will be scorching hot afterwards until the beginning of May.

After a heavy rainfall during yesterday morning in Bangkok that caused many accidents, the Thai Meteorological Department deputy director-general, Somchai Baimuang, disclosed that around 20 to 30 percent of Bangkok will be battered by tropical storms and heavy rainfalls after another one or two days, as well as other provinces.

However, the storms will eventually recede, causing the weather to get warmer again. Due to high atmospheric pressure, the weather will be scorching hot again until the beginning of May.

The number of upcoming storms is unpredictable. Nevertheless, from the statistics, it should not be more than three.

Moreover, Somchai said that the aftershocks in Phuket have resulted from a recent earthquake in Sumatra, Indonesia. He further asked residents to not panic, as earthquake aftershocks are not strong enough to cause any significant damage.

-- Tan Network 2012-04-23

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SET closed up by 5.25 points at 1,199.85 with value of Bt11.75 bn during midday break /TANN

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HM the King bestows Bt84 mn to set up charity foundation to manage water resources /TANN

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Chalerm says he will accompany Yingluck to give Songkran blessing to Prem Thursday

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung said Monday that he will accompany Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to pay homage and give Songkran blessing to Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda on Thursday.

Chalerm confirmed reports that Yingluck planned to lead a group of Cabinet members to visit Prem on the occasion of Songkran or Thai New Year festival.

Chalerm said he did not know which Cabinet members would accompany Yingluck to visit Prem but he would also join the group to seek advice and blessing from Prem.

-- The Nation 2012-04-23

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North Korea threatens 'nationwide sacred war' to wipe out S. Korea

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....pe-out-s-korea/

[Lite Beer]

EGAT plans to raise Ft charge in May

BANGKOK, 23 April 2012 (NNT) - The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) is set to increase the Ft charge from May to August due to the higher cost of production.

During the next billing period, from May to August, the Ft charge will need to be increased, given the prices of crude oil and natural gas have risen, pushing up the electricity production cost, according to EGAT Governor Suthat Pattamasiriwat.

He said that the government previously had made a decision to help flood victims cope with their soaring daily expenses by having EGAT maintain the Ft rate for January-April. As a consequence, the EGAT so far has to bear the burden of 10 billion baht in total.

Mr Suthat explained that the Energy Regulatory Commission of Thailand (ERC) will meet on April 25th to discuss the FT charge increase, which is anticipated to be 40 satang per unit.

-- NNT 2012-04-23