Digital handout may violate charter, graft busters warn

According to NACC, there is no issue; only an economic slowdown and unjustified borrowing.

Digital handout may violate charter, graft busters warn
At Government House in November of last year, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin tries to explain Pheu Thai’s 10,000 bass online budget plan. ( Image: Chanat Katanyu )

The government was forewarned by the National Anti-Corruption Commission on Wednesday that its 10,000 bass digital wallet flyer may be illegal under the constitution and other laws and result in a significant public debt burden.

Niwatchai Kasemmongkol&nbsp, the NACC secretary general, informed investigators that the commission’s decision was the result of extensive research and discussions with experts, scientists, and representatives of pertinent organizations.

It may lower the risk of breaking the law, the State Fiscal and Financial Disciplines Act, and the Currency Act and, most important, do not result in a long-term public debt problem, he said, “if its implementation is through the ordinary budget process, not based on loans raised through borrowing legislation.”

The coalition-core Pheu Thai Party’s online budget plan, according to Mr. Niwatchai, differs from the plan the government unveiled in parliament on September 11, 2023, during fighting for the May 14 general election.

” The Office of the Election Commission should determine whether this contravenes both the natural laws on social functions and the law… Normally, it will be precedent-breaking, he said, that political parties are exempt from having to implement their platform after winning office.

According to the NACC secretary-general, the 10, 000 baht flyer could be viewed as coverage problem if it turns out to gain specific political parties, politicians, people, and conglomerates, which is more likely than benefitting small businesses.

He added that although the authorities intended to use 500 billion baht to carry out the plan, its fiscal multiplier was only 0.4 ( the amount that people and organizations end up spending on other things as a result of purchasing one good or service ).

So, loans will result in a significant debt burden on both the government and the populace. The loan may be repaid over a period of four to five years, which will have an impact on government spending and purchase, according to Mr. Niwatchai.

When there is no financial crisis, the NACC recommended that the government provide financial aid to the poor in order to avoid negative economic effects.

According to the NACC investigation, the Bank of Thailand’s issue signals and data from World Bank and International Monetary Fund studies show that Thailand is experiencing an economic downturn rather than a crisis.

The government should concentrate on economic structure, encourage private consumption and saving and investment in the state industry, and develop employees ‘ skills, according to the NACC, in order to stimulate the economy with balance and sustainability.

Because the flyer would be one-off within a six-month period, the commission also questioned the viability of the government’s plan to use blockchain technology to utilize the online budget scheme.

Niwatchai Kasemmongkol, NACC secretary-general

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‘Improved’ southern peace road map discussed

Ramadan and Songkran peace are also discussed in the first speaks in almost a month.

‘Improved’ southern peace road map discussed
A guy keeps watch as a motorcycle drives by on Yala’s road. ( Bangkok Post File Image )

Individuals said on Wednesday that after two weeks of peace negotiations in Malaysia between the Thai authorities and southern insurgents, a deal has been reached to seek an “improved” route map to resolving issues in the area.

Along with the Thai festival of Songkran, which begins in the middle of April, the two factors also hope to reach an agreement on a ceasefire that will include the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

In an effort to put an end to the conflict that has claimed more than 7,300 lives in the Muslim-majority region since 2004, talks between representatives of the Thai government and the separatist Barisan Revolusi Nasional ( BRN ) resumed on Tuesday.

Later this month and in March, professional sessions may be held to finalize information, according to Malaysian coach Zulkifli Zainal Abidin.

He stated that putting an end to conflicts and holding open consultations will be the main priorities.

Since the Pheu Thai authorities took company, there had never been deals like this. Additionally, they represent the government side’s chief negotiator for the first time in nine times. Former military leaders who served or retired served as the leaders of representatives that the earlier military-led state appointed. &nbsp,

According to chief government negotiator Chatchai Bangchuad, who is also the deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council, the two sides have in principle agreed on a draft road map known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan Toward Peace (JCPP ), which includes resolving the conflict politically.

At technical-level meetings at the end of February and in March, both sides would explain the document word more, according to Anas Abdulrahman, the mind of the BRN group.

The southern regions of Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat, where issue has flared intermittently for years, have been called for freedom by the BRN.

The southern area borders Malaysia and was once a part of Patani, an impartial Malay kingdom, before Thailand annexed it in 1909 as agreed upon by the United Kingdom.

According to Deep South Watch, a group that tracks the crime, the most recent period of fight broke out in 2004, and since then, more than 7,300 people have died. &nbsp,

The BRN stated that before the general election on May 14 of last year, the Thai social position needed to be more secure in order for the process to proceed. As a result, peace talks were postponed.

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Trapped orcas escape from drift ice near Japan

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According to officials, a seed of about 12 killer whales that were caught in drift snow off the northern island of Japan appears to have made it out alive.

A fisherman spotted the stranded dolphins earlier this year, about a kilometer away from Hokkaido.

The animals were seen crammed up and sticking their heads out of the waters to swallow in aircraft images.

Officials traveled to the seaside village to keep an eye on the whales as a result of the standard response.

A flood of public concern over the animals this week was sparked by the film, which was also broadcast on Chinese Television, and calls for government support for their release were made.

To aid in the release of the trapped animals, one group also petitioned the Japanese government to send an icebreaker.

However, on Wednesday, officials responded by reporting that their most recent surveillance trip appeared to indicate the whales had left the area.

A local established in Rausu, a seaside area, said,” We believe they were able to avoid safely.”

They made the assumption that the sharks might have emerged from the snow gaps.

Younger people of the seed were among the trapped orcas, and images of them appeared to show some hemorrhage at their jaws, suggesting that the animals may have made an effort to flee.

Orcas, unlike other large whales, ca n’t stay underwater for too long and must surface every few minutes, according to Japanese media reports.

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Pakistan election: Two deadly blasts in Balochistan day before vote

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At least 20 people have died as a result of two bomb blasts in Pakistan’s Balochistan province on the day of public elections, according to authorities.

In front of an independent president’s party business in the Pishin area, the first storm claimed the lives of 12 people.

Eight people were killed in a second explosion that occurred 150 kilometers ( 93 miles ) away in the Qillah Saif Ullah district. There were numerous people hurt in the two blows.

Crime and allegations of poll-rigging have tainted the election.

No one has yet asserted role for the Pishin harm. The specifics of the following storm are still being discovered.

Images posted on social media depict cars and motorcycles being destroyed by the pressure of the Pishin explosion. It happened in front of an impartial candidate’s election office in the area who, according to authorities, was meeting with his polling representative at the time.

In the past week or so leading up to the ballot on Thursday, there have been a number of violent situations in the provinces of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Police are looking into the explosion’s reason, and the injured have been taken to local hospitals.

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Man jailed for stealing bag from dead person

SINGAPORE: A man stole the backpack of a 22-year-old man who had been found lying still at the base of the Housing Board block in the case of suicide.

He read through the boy’s notebooks, which included a death notice, after taking several electronic devices out of the bag. &nbsp,

The authorities lost data in their investigation into the man’s death because he threw away the handwritten note and returned the dead mans ‘ handphones to their manufacturer options.

For his crimes, 52-year-old Ng Hoe Ghee was given a sentence of four months and four weeks in prison on Wednesday ( Feb 7 ).

He admitted guilt to one fee of deceptive misuse of house and another charge, along with other charges.

THE INCIDENT’S Morning

The jury learned that Ng was close to a tower on August 12 of last year at around 1.20 p.m. when he noticed the man lying at the bottom of the block. The specific address was redacted from courtroom documents.

On his face and body, the gentleman had numerous wounds. &nbsp,

Ng covered the body with some plywood that he had picked up outside. Finally, after taking the lifeless man’s budget, which had fallen nearby,&nbsp.

Police officers responded to a contact about the death shortly after and showed up at the wall.

Ng handed the bag to the police after explaining what he had seen. When the paramedics arrived, they declared the man useless.

The person visited a family member at the wall, and studies revealed that he had jumped from there. He was seen carrying his personal belongings in a dark backpack.

In order to determine which ground the man had jumped from, Ng, who had been given permission by the authorities to leave the scene, went to the block’s 15th floor and climbed the stairs.

Ng noticed the dying man’s black backpack on a higher floor. Before concealing the mound outside his father’s apartment, he took it, placed it in a field, and stacked it on top of another box.

The following morning, Ng went back to the backpack and looked through its contents, discovering a computer, two handphones, notebook, and other items.

The deceased’s word, which stated that he was “feeling problems and was struggling with his idea and faith,” was discovered by the reader after rummaging through the textbooks.

Additionally, the deceased person claimed to have “felt that he was haunted by something or someone.”

Ng threw the word and other items out of the bag and only kept the electronics. He paid one S$ 70 to unlock the password-protected devices because he was unable to access them.

The man, who is not named in court records, unlocked both phones and performed a mill reset of them.

Ng started using one of the SIM cards he had found in both devices after discarding the other. The notebook was also secured by a password.

Everywhere Ng went, he carried the backpack containing the stolen goods.

The dying man’s case was not discovered despite numerous searches by the police at the block in the interim. They searched for Ng to assist them but were unsuccessful, so a policeman newspaper was published against him in an effort to track him down.

On September 7, while on foot guard in Jurong East, police officers approached Ng for a regular search when they learned that he had been the target of an arrest warrant.

Ng claimed he had borrowed the phone from a clerk, but the officers noticed it.

The stolen goods were found after he was forwarded to the investigating official in the case of the deceased.

The officers were unable to gather information from these products to aid in their investigations into the situation surrounding the death because the devices had been reset and the death note had already been thrown away.

Ng also acknowledged taking a girl’s cellphone that had fallen to the ground on another event.

Ng was sentenced to prison by the trial, with a sentence ranging from four decades two weeks to six months and four days.

According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Colin Ng, there are n’t many cases of dishonest misappropriation of a deceased person’s property that have been reported.

Between 2001 and November 2023, he claimed, there were only three like cases before the judges. According to the punishment statistics, the average and middle jail terms were 17.1 and 15.7 weeks, respectively.

Ng apologized for what he did and cited economic hardship as justification for his reduction. He claimed to have observed the dying man struggling and reminded himself that” this kind of factor” should not be made public or known.

He could have been fined and served up to three years in prison for unscrupulous theft of a deceased person.

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Thailand, Cambodia to discuss joint petroleum exploitation

Additionally, perfect officials agree to take action against air pollution.

Thailand, Cambodia to discuss joint petroleum exploitation
At Government House on Wednesday, a guard of honor greets Thai Prime Minister Hun Manet, straight. ( Image: Chanat Katanyu )

On Wednesday, the perfect ministers of Thailand and Cambodia agreed that the two nations would talk about sharing power tools within their disputed border region in the Gulf of Thai.

Hun Manet, the president of Cambodia, paid Government House a one-day visit and spoke with Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin.

The two leaders, according to government official Chai Wacharonke, concurred that international affairs and nbsp were having an impact on the energy security of both nations.

Within their overlapping claims area ( OCA ) in the Gulf of Thailand, they consented to discussions on joint petroleum exploration and production. Up to 500 million barrels of oil and fuel are thought to be stored beneath the ocean in the OCA, which spans an area of about 26, 000 sq kilometers. Around 60 % of Thailand’s energy is produced by gasoline.

They also consented to make borders industry even easier. The two nations were suggested to link their unique economic zones in neighboring Sa Kaeo and Poipet by the Thai prime minister.

According to the official, the two leaders agreed to work together on border landmine clearance, to enhance border crossings, and to promote international travel.

The leaders talked about the region’s pervasive dust and came to the conclusion that it was important to reduce field burning, exchange knowledge, and strengthen ties with other neighboring nations to combat the production of fine dust.

In order to combat virtual fraud, drug trafficking, and other trafficking, the prime ministers agreed to increase border surveillance.

A embassy general’s office would start in Songkhla, a southwestern province, and one in Siem Reap, Thailand, it was confirmed.

According to the official, the Thai prime minister requested that the Thai government make it easier for employees to travel to their homes to enjoy the customary New Year during the Songkran event in April and then return to work in Thailand.

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Singapore to increase pool of public sector psychologists by 40% to meet demand for mental health services

SUPPORT FOR YOUTHS’ MENTAL HEALTH

According to the 2022 National Population Health Survey, young folks aged 18 to 29 made up the majority of Singaporeans with poor mental health.

An intermediate private facility will be built to assist young people at risk of suicide or serious self-harm, according to Ms. Rahayu.
 
Certainly all young people who exhibit homicidal behavior have mental health issues. &nbsp,

Instead, she added,” They might have dealt with social stressors like bullying and difficulty juggling schoolwork.”

This group of young people, aged 10 to 19, may be served by the fresh service, which will provide them with support in a secure setting.

According to Ms. Rahayu, they will be assisted by a group that consists of psychiatrists, psychological professionals, social workers, nurses, and live-in maintenance staff.

The service will offer services like recognizing the needs of young people in need, offering psychosocial interventions like counseling and supportive medical care, and facilitating youths ‘ move to group partners ‘ support before they are discharged. &nbsp,

Additionally, by 2030, there will be an increase in the number of community mental health clubs, also known as CREST- Youth, and youth-integrated groups that support young people with mental healthcare needs. &nbsp,

Four youth-integrated team had reached more than 3, 000 students and parents as of September of last year, and eight CREST-Youth team reached over 87, 000 young people and their families.

According to Ms. Rahayu, this may grow to&nbsp, 15 youth-integrated groups, and CREST-Yet teams across the nation by 2030.

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