South-East Asia – Page 1607

Global body indefinitely suspends Cordlife’s accreditation over mishandled cord blood

On: December 6, 2023

SINGAPORE: After it was discovered that tanks holding cord blood units had been subjected to unfavorable temperatures, the Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy ( FACT) has suspended the cellular therapy accreditation of private cord bank Cordlife indefinitely.

In a regulatory filing on Tuesday ( Dec 5 ), Cordlife, which is listed on the Singapore Exchange, &nbsp, stated that it had received notice from FACT informing the business that the accreditation body had started internal investigations into the issues raised in the notice by the Ministry of Health ( MOH) regarding the storage tanks. Since November 2015, Cordlife has been recognized by FACT. &nbsp,

According to Cordlife, “FACT has notified that powerful immediately, the agency’s FACT accreditation may be suspended continuously, at the very least until the investigations are finished and problems are resolved.”

On November 30, MOH reported that seven of the vehicles Cordlife used to keep cord blood units had been heated to a temperature higher than -150 degrees Fahrenheit.

On July 24, a member of the public complained to MOH, claiming that in addition to other service excellent issues, cord blood models kept at Cordlife in tanks had been exposed to temperatures above 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

On August 15 and November 16 through November 21, the ministry then conducted unexpected audits of the business. &nbsp,

The reviews revealed that seven of Cordlife’s 22 storage tanks had experienced temperatures above appropriate limits in cryopreserved cord blood units starting in November 2020.

As a result, nearly 2, 200 thread blood units from 2, 150 customers have been harmed. A further 17, 000 consumers may be impacted while investigations are ongoing.

14 days have passed for Cordlife, a medical laboratory services with wire blood and human tissue banking licenses in Singapore, to submit its complaints to MOH.

Woman jailed for getting jobs with forged NTU degree, says she faced economic and parental pressure

By: Marcus Ching

On: December 6, 2023

In: South-East Asia

SINGAPORE: On Wednesday, December 6, a person was given an eight-month prison term for forging an architectural degree from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and using it to land numerous processing jobs over the course of 16 years.

She had forged the amount, according to her attorney, to “placate” her mother, who put emotional strain on her. According to Fonseka Wannerichega Hema Ranjini’s attorney, the criminal also had to work to support herself and her relatives, which put her under financial stress.

44-year-old Malaysian woman Fonseka entered a guilty plea to two counts of fraud and lying last month, with additional two charges being taken into account.

Fonseka had enrolled in electrical and manufacturing architecture at NTU in 1998. She withdrew from the program in 2004 because she struggled with the labor and the costs.

The girl faked a Bachelor of Engineering level from NTU in 2004 with third-class honors, according to her attorney, who afterwards claimed that her mother had reduced funding for her education.

Over the years, she used the forged certificate to land a number of tasks, starting with the position of assistant managing director at Marshall Cavendish Education for S$ 4,200 per month.

She also held assistant managing editor positions at Scholastic Education International ( Singapore ), Cengage Learning Asia, and Oxygen Studio Designs as a result of the certification.

She worked as a learning editor in publishing for the Walt Disney Company ( Southeast Asia ), where her highest monthly salary was S$ 6,800, with an additional transport allowance of S$ 1, 084 per month, until the company found her forged certificate after conducting checks.

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Melissa Heng, the deputy public attorney, asked for eight to ten months in prison for Fonseka on Wednesday, highlighting her efforts to make the signature look authentic and the fact that she was able to secure five jobs with it over the course of 16 years.

According to Ms. Heng,” With each subsequent application, she was able to legitimize her continue, indicating her academic qualifications, and in doing so continue deceiving employers.”

She claimed that Fonseka received a” significant income” between S$ 47, 000 and S$ 83, 000 for some fees.

When Fonseka’s dishonesty was exposed, her answer revealed her lack of regret, according to Ms. Heng.

Although Ms. Heng did not request a payment order, claiming that it was difficult to quantify the harm done, she asserted that the employers who hired Fonseka did require specific educational requirements for the positions offered.

It would n’t be an exaggeration to say that Fonseka was expected to apply in her jobs training derived from the obtaining of her purported degree, she said, adding that the fact that this was present showed the employers valued educational qualifications.

Instead, defense attorney Foo Cheow Ming requested a great or, in the event that the court did not reach an agreed-upon fine, an extremely small jail sentence.

She responded to her mother’s force by defending herself.

According to Mr. Foo, the” series of cascading events” started as a result of pressure from Fonseka’s family, who stopped providing funding for her education centuries ago.

According to Mr. Foo,” Fonseka took the first step of forging a ( degree ) in order to appease her mother because of the intense psychological pressure ( her ) mother placed on her sense of worth and self-esteem.

” Following that, the financial strain of having to make a living and provide for her own parents caused the use of the forged ( degree )”

He claimed that while Fonseka’s “filial devotion remains unwavering” and she continues to care for her parents, his customer suffered “physical and intellectual abuse” from her mother, who has an undiagnosed personality disorder.

According to Mr. Foo, the circumstance of his client could be distinguished from other instances of cheating where the accused person’s public or legal status changed as a result of deception on government agencies.

Mr. Foo said it was” not as if she did n’t work at all,” despite the fact that Fonseka’s actions helped her land jobs she might not have otherwise been able to.

According to Mr. Foo, it was also not a circumstance in which she caused her employers” a gross full loss,” as in the case of blatant theft, criminal breach of trust, or lying.

According to the attorney, Fonseka’s employers did receive her solutions and the price she provided as a result.

If Fonseka’s work is alleged to have been bad, Mr. Foo argued that “employing a genuine graduate is no guarantee against poor or underpar performance on the part of the employee.”

Importantly, he added that there was no possible chance to the general public, clients, or employers because Fonseka did not practice engineering in her jobs, which were primarily in the language or journal sectors.

He deemed the prosecution’s proposed prison sentence to be “excessive and inappropriate.”

According to District Judge Terence Tay, the basic rule for financial offenses is that the word will become harsher in cases where there is a higher economic value involved.

A judicial phrase is appropriate, according to Judge Tay,” as long as the offense in question forces the sufferer to part with property that has more than minor value.”

Given that Fonseka actually worked for her employers, he claimed that the damage done in this case was the problem.

Nevertheless, he claimed that Fonseka’s employment was based on his education, and that there would have been some pay differentials and expectations for the companies ‘ contributions.

According to the judge, her crimes may have embarrassed her businesses as well as depriving another deserving workers of the work she had obtained through deceit.

According to him, it was challenging to identify the offenses, and if” this becomes a prevalent condition,” all employers may be required to check every certificate issued by their staff.

If Fonseka’s family was the one who stopped paying her fees, Judge Tay said he was confused by her alleged sorrow at leaving NTU.

He said,” I do n’t understand how it would ever justify her lying about her educational background, which persisted for many years.”

The judge expressed sympathy for Fonseka’s community position but asserted that there was no evidence to suggest that the events gave rise to the crimes.

He claimed that while Fonseka did a good job for the majority of the jobs she held—aside from the one at Scholastic, where she was fired—her offenses may have disrupted the pay structures at the companies, which are typically tied to academic qualifications, though this could have been replaced over time by job performance.

The judge added that Fonseka was still relatively young and still had a bright future ahead of her,” I think it’s been well-documented that education is not everything.”

While some careers require certifications, others do not, and some people have been successful in these positions, according to the judge. &nbsp,

The accused ought to look into for another possibilities, he said.

He concurred with the trial that Fonseka should not be compensated because it is difficult to quantify the hurt the offenses caused.

Actor Edwin Goh leaves Mediacorp after 14 years, is now working in retail in Australia and taking acting classes

By: Marcus Ching

On: December 6, 2023

In: South-East Asia

Mediacorp has fired Edwin Goh. The 29-year-old actor shared the news in an Instagram Reel he posted on Tuesday, December 5, along with videos of him giving back his 14 years old workers go.

I just wanted to express my sincere gratitude to Mediacorp for the years of development, experience, and opportunities, as well as for practically providing me with a place to grow up in, Edwin said in the tape.

He continued by saying that in order to continue to grow, it was now moment for him to leave his comfort zone.

Edwin revealed that he has been employed in financial in what appears to be a department store’s smell counter. He has also been attending interviews and taking acting lessons in Australia to improve his craft. He made no mention of needlework.

Early this season, Edwin and his artist girlfriend Rachel Wan relocated to Sydney.

The Celebrity Agency (TCA ) announced in a statement that Edwin’s contract with the organization had expired. We hope Edwin succeeds in all of his coming endeavors and are eager to collaborate with him once more.

For his statement, Edwin received a lot of positive feedback, including from his star friends. Romeo Tan wrote,” Yolo,” while Cynthia Koh wrote:” You will always have me cheering you in!”

Priscelia Chan, Yvonne Lim, Bonnie Loo, and Lin Meijiao are a few different celebrities who wished him well. In reference to Edwin’s standing debut at the age of 15 in the TV series Fighting Spiders, native singer Yung Raja wrote “FIGHTING SPIDERS GAAAAAANG.”

Freelance drum instructor molested 11-year-old student, used secret code to hide sexual conversation

By: Marcus Ching

On: December 6, 2023

In: South-East Asia

SINGAPORE: A woman who was six years old started taking lessons from a drum instructor. &nbsp, However, the 32-year-old gentleman started preying on the woman after Justin Lu Zhao En was hired to teach her in the protection of her own apartment. &nbsp,

The guy went to the kid’s room and molested her there under the pretense of seeing her research.

He then started texting her messages that were sexually explicit, actually creating a secret code to let her know when someone was outside. Additionally, the two engaged in sexual activity in a Facetime video talk.

On Tuesday, December 5, Lu admitted guilt to two matters of molesting a child under the age of 14, one matter of showing an offensive image at her, and two costs of procuring the payment of an indecent act from he. He was sentenced to six strokes of the wood. &nbsp,

His imprisonment was also taken into consideration for three additional similar costs and one cost of obstructing justice. &nbsp,

Due to a joke buy protecting her personality, the victim’s identity may be revealed. &nbsp,

She reportedly started taking disc classes at a music studio andnbsp when she was six years old, according to the court. The person accused was her teacher. &nbsp,

She was given to other teachers to continue these classes until he left the audio workshop in 2018. &nbsp,

Eventually, the defendant’s father hired the accused, who was then a self-employed drum teacher, to teach his daughter privately because she preferred him. &nbsp,

Beginning in 2019, the accused started holding regular roller training in the victim’s home living room. An adult, such as the victim’s parents or the local helper, may be present during the lessons. &nbsp,

Even though nothing happened at first, the accused started abusing the 11-year-old child in 2021. &nbsp,

After lessons on February 23, 2021, the accused requested to see the defendant’s research, and the two went to her home. The person sexually assaulted her as they sat on chair next to one another, shocking the young woman. She kept the incident a secret from everyone because she did n’t want to think about it. &nbsp,

Additionally, they texted about having sex. In order to determine whether someone was nearby the child when they did so, Lu&nbsp created a secret password. Three symbols in the colors green, orange, and dark were used in this. &nbsp,

According to court documents, the red icon meant” I do not want to speak about sexual issues right now,” followed by the orange and green, which indicated that there was someone present and not to discuss intimate topics.

The accused kept pestering the victim for skinny pictures and videos, so she frequently used the dark icon. &nbsp,

The man exposed himself to the victim during a Facebook video call between February and March 2021, ordering her to engage in immoral behavior. &nbsp,

After a drum lessons on March 2, 2021, the man assaulted the girl once more. She complied when he requested nude pictures and videos from her a few days afterwards. He asked her to engage in sexual activity during the same talk.

On March 6, 2021, her parents filed a police report after learning of the offenses. &nbsp,

According to his charge sheet, the accused called the victim via WhatsApp in May 2022 and requested that she cut her case against him and remove her sexual abuse accusation. &nbsp,

The trial claimed in its imprisonment submissions that the accused had abused the trust relationship by using it for physical gratification. &nbsp,

According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Chan Yi Cheng, the number of costs also indicated the victim’s aggravated conditions and ongoing misuse.

Regarding the case, District Judge Brenda Chua noted that Wayne Ong, the accused’s attorney, had stated in mitigation that, despite having a duty to the target, his power was limited. &nbsp,

It’s not at all poor, the judge declared. &nbsp,

She noted that the accused had essentially been the defendant’s tutor or instructor for six decades. &nbsp,

She also believed that he had concealed anything by using symbols as a key code. &nbsp,

Crowd pleasers: 25 Christmas potluck dishes you can make in under 60 minutes

By: Marcus Ching

On: December 5, 2023

In: South-East Asia

That sweet could also be used in carrots and parsnips, which, when combined with fruity glaze, strike the ideal balance. What’s the best part? The sluggish crew can make the recipe a day in advance, but maintain the parsnips new until the very end. It is a low-effort, high-return addition that brightens up the holiday table with only six ingredients.

19………………………. roasted cauliflower in its entirety with walnut pesto

One afternoon for preparing

Govt assures fugitive will be caught

By: Barkar Nash

On: December 5, 2023

In: South-East Asia

DISPLAYED: December 6, 2023 at 06: 04

Following an unconfirmed report that high-profile fugitive Chaowalit Thongduang may have fled to the Southeast Asian country, the Office of the Attorney General ( OAG ) confirmed on Tuesday that Thailand has an extradition treaty with Indonesia.

According to OAG official Prayuth Phetkhun, after authorities confirm the whereabouts of any prisoners who have fled, the attorney common has the right to request their extradition.

In Chaowalit’s event, the Royal Thai Police, which is in charge of apprehending him, needs to find him and ensure his locations. The federal police chief is then request that the attorney general start his extradition after this is finished.

He added that Thailand also has an extradition agreement with Malaysia, another potential destination for Chaowalit, and that the OAG may continue if Thailand has one with the nation in which the criminal is hiding.

According to Mr. Prayuth, Thai authorities may seek his repatriation under a mutual arrangement through the Foreign Ministry if he fled to an nation that does not have an additional agreement with Thailand.

Following the unconfirmed report that Chaowalit, also known as” Sia Paeng Nanod,” may have fled, possibly to Indonesia, Mr. Prayuth was providing information on how to bring him back. The prisoner officially took a boat through Satun’s La Ngu neighborhood.

Chaowalit, who was incarcerated for attempted murder and was facing numerous other criminal charges, has been at massive ever since he left Maharaj Nakhon Si Thammarat Hospital on October 22 and sought dental care there.

He flew into the Banthad rock collection, which encompasses the regions of Phatthalung, Trang, and Satun.

He managed to evade get despite a thorough manhunt and released video recordings in which he claimed to have been treated unfairly and to be the only suspect sentenced in spite of the involvement of several different suspects. Additionally, he asserted that his loan appeal had not been heard pretty.

Govt nod for ‘CEO governors’

By: Barkar Nash

On: December 5, 2023

In: South-East Asia

A Thai Rak Thai repeat is planned by reviewers.

As part of the government’s decentralization strategy, the government has agreed in principle to give all provincial rulers power that is roughly equivalent to that of a companyCEO.

However, some critics and the main opposition party, the Move Forward Party ( MFP), have expressed skepticism about whether the alleged decentralization corresponds with more widely accepted international definitions.

The proposal, which was approved by the cabinet, calls for provincial governors to perform performance evaluations of administrative senior civil servants in their provinces, increase their salaries, provide special rewards, and, when necessary, take punitive action against them under Section 53 of the 2022 imperial decree on incorporated area-based administration.

The proposal, which was presented by the National Economic and Social Development Council ( NESD ) on Monday at the mobile cabinet meeting in Nong Bua Lam Phu, has a start date of October 1, 2024, for the 2025 fiscal year.

According to the source, key performance indicators (KPIs ) would be introduced to assess provincial accomplishments and support government decisions regarding budget planning and development programs.

According to the source, provinces were also given instructions on Monday to outline a 20-year statewide development outlook and provide information on current monthly development plans.

In the meantime, the government gave the Ministry of Interior the task of compiling the information it had received so that the Budget Bureau could distribute the state budget with the provinces ‘ growth plans.

According to the source, all provincial governors will receive a formal briefing on the precise range of their new power and how to carry out their newly established responsibilities in accordance with the order.

The “CEO” concept, which was included in Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s state policy statement, was criticized by MFPlist-MP Parit Wacharasindhu in a debate on September 12 as nothing more than an updated version of Thai Rak Thai Party policy.

According to Mr. Parit, the policy should not be viewed as pro-decentralization because these new-style governors would n’t be chosen by the people of their provinces.

Decentralization’s main benefit, according to him, is that it gives people the power to choose their own leaders to uphold their freedom and guide the growth of their populations.

Additionally, Mr. Parit had charged that the Srettha leadership had broken its earlier promise to run provincial governor votes in a few areas.

He claimed that the ruling group owes its supporters an argument.

If operational energy has already been partially decentralized to the municipal and tambon operational organizations, according to Stithorn Thananithichot, director of the Office of Innovation for Democracy at King Prajadhipok’s Institute, the policy is unlikely to be successful.

Municipal administrators now have much less authority than they did 20 years before, when the Thai Rak Thai Party implemented this exact same scheme, he claimed.

According to him, the only way to be successful would be for the government to replace these rulers with the organizers of the current local administrative bodies.

Job integration among the current local administrative bodies and municipal offices of different ministries in each province is what is lacking and essential for the success of power decentralization, he said.

At the provincial level, integrated administration does n’t really exist, he claimed.

Freeing hostages top priority, says PM

By: Barkar Nash

On: December 5, 2023

In: South-East Asia

PUBLISHED: 05 :17 on December 6, 2023.

The government will continue to assist all remaining Thai captives taken by the Arab violent group Hamas in its wonder assault on Israel on October 7, according to Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin.

On Tuesday, Mr. Srettha informed reporters that there is no good news to share just still because any additional prisoner releases may wait until the following ceasefire.

He refuted reports that the authorities intended to abandon the remaining captives to their own products.

Their actual amount cannot be determined, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, but eight or nine workers are thought to still be held captive.

Mr. Parnpree said it appeared that Israel and Qatar had some disputes, but this may not have an impact on the Thai victims because Hamas has already released the majority of them in response to another issue about how the Qatar-mediated discussions were going.

At 12.15 p.m. on Monday, El Al Airlines journey LY081 carried six freed victims, including Pattanayut Tonsokree, Owat Suriya, Paiboon Ratnil, Kong Saelao, Chakraphan Sikhena, and Chalermchai Saengkaew.

Mr. Kong, 26, has since made his way back to Ban Kiew Doi Luang, a neighborhood in Chiang Rai’s tambon Rim Khong.

Mr. Kong’s family Suntree Saelee expressed her joy at learning that her husband was still alive to reporters.

2,174 people who lived in Chiang Rai had left to work in Israel. 1 101 had arrived back in Thailand as of November 27. Since the fighting started, three residents of the state have perished, and Hamas has freed two victims, including Mr. Kong.

However, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, the minister of labor, stated that the government is negotiating with different nations to hire Thai workers from Israel to function in their separate agricultural sectors.

Following the recent signing of a bilateral agreement to that impact, some Thai employees are anticipated to travel to South Korea to begin working there first in the following year.

Israel has even extended the contracts of those who entered into five-year agreements for an additional time and demanded that Thai workers continue to work it.

Mr. Phiphat stated that the government has already paid each of the earlier returnees 15, 000 ringgit in compensation and is getting ready to do so.

Following Tuesday, proposals for further compensation of 50,000 baht and a three-year debt suspension will be made to the cabinet.

Group voices concern over Loei cable car

By: Barkar Nash

On: December 5, 2023

In: South-East Asia

To prevent the overcrowding, the government needs a program.

6 Dec 2023 at 04: 59 Described

Following an attempt to revive a cord car venture it, the Sueb Nakhasathien Foundation on Tuesday expressed concern about potential congestion in the Phu Kradueng national park in Loei.

The cable car system has been a contentious task for many years, and campaigners have consistently opposed it.

While the basis is convinced that developed construction engineering can lessen the effects on the environment and wildlife, Ornyupa Sangkamarn, the organization’s secretary-general, said that the potential for overcrowding is now of greater concern.

She demanded to know how commerce will be handled by the government to prevent such activities from upsetting the fragile ecosystem there and the wildlife’s natural wildlife.

Phu Kradueng, like another parks, deals with problems with overtourism, such as the buildup and removal of trash over extended vacations, she continued.

Ms. Ornyupa was likewise skeptical that the cable car project’s approval would result in the implementation of other tourism-related initiatives.

The monuments in Phu Kradueng are dispersed, making it difficult to move from one location to another. After the cable car, how can we be certain that there wo n’t be any more projects? She enquired.

She also questioned whether Phu Kradueng, which is already open to visitors for eight months out of the year, would be available year-round to support the project’s investment.

She added that the process of conducting an EIA research in many projects failed to properly reflect the actual conditions of the region. She said the foundation had carefully check the cable car project, particularly the environment impact assessment study.

After the mobile cabinet meeting on Monday and Monday, the Phu Kradueng cord car project is once again in the news. Its design will be developed to make traveling more easy for visitors of all ages and to strengthen the province’s tourism industry.

The initiative, which is estimated to cost 800 million baht, is anticipated to bring in between 10,000 and 20,000 visitors per day.

Visitor entrance fees to Phu Kradueng totaled 21, 109, 995 baht in fiscal 2022, according to the Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation ( DNP ). The park can only accommodate 2,000 guests per day at the moment.

The Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration ( Dasta ) recently received permission from the DNP to survey the park for a feasibility study.

The government was presented with the cable car task by the Loei province, and the cabinet in principle approved the plan, according to PM’s Office Minister Puangpet Chunlaiad on Tuesday and Monday.

She added that funding of 28 million baht was requested for the design study to be used in the future EIA research, noting that the past was done in response to requests from the locals to increase hospitality revenue.

The pattern investigation, according to Ms. Puangpet, will take about three months.

PM tells army to beef up drug, unrest fight

By: Barkar Nash

On: December 5, 2023

In: South-East Asia

PUBLISHED: 4:25 on December 6, 2023.

Srettha Thavisin, the prime minister, requested on Tuesday that the military increase its efforts to quell unrest in the South and illegal drug trafficking along the Myanmar border.

After meeting with military chief Gen Songwit Noonpackdee, Mr. Srettha stated that he agreed with the army’s strategy and plans for resolving the turmoil in the South with assistance from their Malay counterparts and steps to thwart illicit drug smuggling from Myanmar.

To really stop drug smuggling, he said, the soldiers will collaborate strongly with the police.

” I also urge the troops to assist people in a variety of life-related matters, such as providing assistance to members during floods or droughts, collaborating closely with local authorities to thwart illegal drug trafficking, or assisting in the reduction of the environmental impact by preventing or extinguishing forest fires. Mr. Srettha stated,” I want to see a closer connection between the troops and local people.”

However, the army will offer treatment services in some of its military hospitals for patients with psychological disorders brought on by illegal drugs, according to RAdm Thanitpong Sirisawetsak, a spokesman for the Defense Ministry, who spoke to the media on Tuesday and NBPSP.

The Royal Thai Army Medical Department will conduct a pilot project during the first step, which will run from this quarter until February of next year. There will be a mental heath rehabilitation and recovery center at four of its facilities in Prachin Buri, Nakhon Ratchasima, Ubon, and Kanchanaburi. Next month, the job will be expanded to include five additional hospitals in Lampang, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phitsanulok, and Udon Thani.

Each military clinics may have a capacity to treat up to ten people.

The remaining 27 military institutions will then receive mental health rehabilitation and recovery centers. They will be able to manage up to 110 people in full, he said.

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She responded to her mother’s force by defending herself.