Flights to and from China on slow rise

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The number of flights between China and Thailand continues to increase but remains below the pre-pandemic level, according to Aeronautical Radio of Thailand (Aerothai) Co Ltd president Nopasit Chakpitak.

From October 2022 to April 2023, a total of 12,805 flights operated between the countries, representing a 98% rise compared to the same period the year before, Mr Nopasit said yesterday.

An upward trend is expected, as efforts are being made to manage air traffic and ensure smooth operations, he said.

He attributed the rise in flights to China’s early reopening, which prompted many Chinese airlines to operate additional flights and increase their frequency. There were 1,063 flights from China in January, 1,747 in February, 3,082 in March and 4,240 in April.

An estimated 5,330 flights are expected from China in May, followed by 6,090 in June, 7,150 in July, 7,460 in August and 7,340 in September.

The total number between last October and this September is projected to reach 46,175, according to the Aerothai president.

Despite the optimistic outlook, he noted the projected figure is still 66% lower than the same period in 2019.

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Parties jostle over cabinet posts

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Pita: All coalition supports PM bid
Pita: All coalition supports PM bid

The Move Forward Party (MFP) is eyeing key cabinet posts dealing with finance, foreign affairs, defence and energy while Pheu Thai will be offered economic portfolios such as the transport, commerce, and industry ministries, sources said.

The sources said the MFP has informed Pheu Thai that it will take charge of ministries handling security affairs to push for military reform and decentralisation, and oversee the development of human resources, which are all part of its election platform.

The sources said the MFP also wants its leader, Pita Limjaroenrat, who is tipped to become the next prime minister, to concurrently serve as foreign affairs minister as he will represent Thailand on the global stage after the coalition government is formed.

Apart from the prime ministerial post that Mr Pita is expected to take, there are a total of 35 cabinet posts to be allocated among coalition partners.

On Thursday, the MFP announced the formation of an eight-party coalition and the setting up of working groups to lobby senators for support and thrash out policy platforms, with a memorandum of understanding to be disclosed on Monday.

Mr Pita said on Thursday that all the coalition parties agreed to support him as the next prime minister as the MFP clinched the most seats in last Sunday’s election.

The eight parties are the MFP, Pheu Thai, Prachachart, Thai Sang Thai, Seri Ruam Thai, Fair, Palang Sangkhom Mai and Pheu Thai Ruam Phalang.

With the latest inclusion of the Chartpattanakla Party and the New Party, the MFP-led bloc has now swelled to ten parties, pulling in 316 House seats.

Deputy MFP leader Phicharn Chaowapatanawong said on Friday that Chartpattanakla, which garnered two House seats, and the New Party, which secured one, agreed to join the coalition.

The MFP would get 17 cabinet posts, while Pheu Thai, which won the second-largest number of House seats, would get 15-16, the sources said.

Prachachart and Thai Sang Thai would each get one cabinet post, while a group of small parties would have a total quota of just one cabinet post, with Seri Ruam Thai expected to clinch it, the sources said.

The sources said the MFP wants to oversee “A-list” ministries, including the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Defence Ministry, Interior Ministry, Finance Ministry, Education Ministry, Energy Ministry, Labour Ministry and Justice Ministry.

Meanwhile, Pheu Thai will be offered the commerce, transport, agriculture, digital economy and society, tourism and industry portfolios.

The sources said the MFP would drop Pheu Thai’s 10,000-baht digital money scheme as it would require a budget of up to 500 billion baht.

The MFP said it would spend that money to finance its election pledges, such as increasing the monthly allowance for elderly people to 3,000 baht, the sources said.

The sources went on to claim that Pheu Thai was not happy with the MFP assuming control of most of the A-list cabinet portfolios.

The party thought it should have the right to choose the ministerial positions it desires to carry out its policy pledges, they added.

However, MFP secretary-general Chaithawat Tulathon on Friday dismissed as untrue media reports that his party has been allocated A-list ministries, saying the issue has not yet been finalised.

Mr Chaithawat, speaking in his capacity as coordinator for the formation of a new government, denied the reports that A-list ministerial quotas had already been allocated, with MFP list-MP Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn taking the helm of the Interior Ministry.

“Such reports are untrue. When I heard about the reports, I felt shocked and stunned,” said the key MPF member.

“It is still in the process of thrashing out political platforms with a memorandum of understanding,” he added.

Mr Chaithawat urged caution as the allocation of ministries has not yet been finalised.

Speculation about ministerial quotas threatens to affect the negotiations among coalition partners and may cause misunderstandings among people appointed to each party’s negotiation team, he said.

He said the media had gone too far as the issue has not yet been concluded.

The coalition will work out an MoU which will map out guidelines for their collaboration. Details of that will be disclosed on May 22, the day earmarked for all coalition partners to sign it, Mr Chaithawat said.

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Dems deny bid to join MFP-led coalition

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Move Forward plans ‘too controversial’

Key Democrat figures yesterday rejected media reports that the party was seeking to join the coalition led by the Move Forward Party (MFP).

According to the reports circulating on Thursday night following the formation of the ten-party alliance, a group of winning Democrat candidates close to acting party secretary-general Chalermchai Sri-on said Mr Chalermchai tried to approach the MFP and Pheu Thai to be part of the coalition.

Two figures — Det-it Khaothong and Chaichana Dejdecho, who won House seats in Songkhla and Nakhon Si Thammarat, respectively — were said to be spearheading the move. The group was said to have 16 out of 25 seats the party captured in Sunday’s polls.

Mr Chaichana said the reports were entirely false and speculated that they were released to gauge Democrat opinions after some parties had declared their stance.

He said the party stood by its declaration that it would not support the abolition of the lese majeste law, would not tolerate corruption and would not allow the uncontrolled use of cannabis.

However, he said a decision on the party’s future would be decided after a new party executive is elected and the election winners are endorsed by the Election Commission.

Jurin Laksanawisit, who vowed to resign if the party won less than 25 seats, announced he was quitting before the party hit that target late on Sunday evening. The party grabbed just 22 seats from the constituencies and three more from the list system, according to the unofficial result.

Alongkorn Ponlaboot, acting Democrat deputy leader, yesterday urged media outlets to verify the reports, especially those with unnamed sources, because they could be used to discredit the party.

“The party is ready to be in the opposition and scrutinise the work of the MFP-led government. We want to reaffirm our stance that we disagree with amending Sections 1-2 of the constitution and the lese majeste law,” he said.

Sombat Yasin, a Democrat candidate who won in Mae Song Hon, said yesterday it was unlikely the party would join the MFP-led coalition because the MFP had highly controversial policies.

He did not rule out the possibility of the party working with Pheu Thai in case the MFP failed to set up a government and Pheu Thai stepped in to form its own alliance.

However, Mr Sombat said Pheu Thai must leave the lese majeste law alone for the Democrats to consider joining its coalition.

“I’ve talked to Mr Chalermchai, and he shares the same opinions. We don’t agree with the MFP. But if the lead party in the coalition changes to reduce political divisiveness without touching the lese majeste law, we think it’s acceptable,” he said.

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Police arrest S Korean ‘dealer’

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A South Korean national has been arrested after 0.5 grammes of crystal methamphetamine was found in his room.

The discovery came after authorities received a tip-off about the man’s alleged involvement in drug smuggling to South Korea, the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) said on Friday.

The Korea National Police earlier this month coordinated with the ONCB to investigate the 46-year-old man, identified as Chun Youn-bae, who had allegedly been smuggling crystal meth to South Korea in 2021-2022.

ONCB secretary-general Wichai Chaimongkhon said on Friday that the ONCB sought a warrant from Bangkok South Criminal Court on Thursday to search the suspect’s condominium in Soi Sukhumvit 21, where officials discovered 0.5 grammes of crystal meth, drug paraphernalia and plastic packaging bags hidden in his toilet.

Mr Wichai said the suspect faced charges, including possessing Type 1 narcotics without permission and overstaying his visa. He was taken to Lumpini police station for legal proceedings.

The suspect told police he had been in Thailand since 2006 for study purposes and had also run a tourist business for around five years, earning an income of around 50,000 baht.

The suspect claimed that he met a Thai woman on social media who offered to sell about 0.6 grammes of crystal meth per round that could be delivered by a motorcycle taxi driver or sent to the condo’s mailbox.

Despite the suspect refusing to provide further information about the Thai woman, Mr Wichai said that the ONCB had learnt the drug dealer’s identity and assumed Mr Chun may also have been a drug dealer, adding that the ONCB is gathering evidence to track down the remainder of the drug network members.

In a separate development, the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) arrested four members of a cross-border drug network along the Mekong River on Tuesday and confiscated 7 million meth pills.

Pol Maj Gen Thanarat Sonkla, commander of the Narcotics Suppression Division 2, said police acted on a tip-off to tighten border security in Nakhon Phanom and Sakon Nakhon.

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Nakhon Pathom polling station to hold revote

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The Election Commission (EC) has ordered a revote at a polling station in Nakhon Pathom’s Muang district tomorrow after heavy rain and strong winds disrupted voting last Sunday.

EC chairman Ittiporn Boonpracong issued the order calling for the revote at polling station 10 in Constituency 1, urging eligible voters who cast their ballots at this station to exercise their right once more tomorrow.

The poll rerun will take place in the compound of the Bang Khaem tambon administrative organisation in Muang district from 8am to 5pm. On May 14, polling officials decided to suspend voting at the polling station after an afternoon rainstorm battered the compound and damaged the polling booths.

Meanwhile, the EC said all the election results from the constituency system nationwide are complete, pending the revote in Nakhon Pathom’s Constituency 1.

The office is reexamining the election results submitted by the provincial election committees and will update the results on www.ectreport.com.

Under the EC’s regulations, provincial election directors are required to publish the result of the vote count for the constituency and party-list system within five days of close of voting.

Meanwhile, voter turnout in Chachoengsao was almost 83%, making it among the top five provinces with the highest turnout, said provincial election director Thanakrit Nakcharupong.

A total of 477,004 out of 575,796 eligible voters cast ballots in the general election last Sunday, or 82.84%, up from the 79.07% turnout registered in the 2019 general election. Of all the ballots cast, 20,871, or 4.38%, were spoiled ballots, and 5,500 ballots, or 1.15%, were cast for no candidates.

According to Mr Thanakrit, a small commotion took place during a vote count when a media outlet reported that ballots from overseas voters who are in Constituency 3 had not been delivered for a count and were marked as spoiled ballots.

He said the report was inaccurate and insisted that the ballots, which were delivered on May 12 and May 13, were counted along with the others after the close of voting.

The other provinces with the highest turnout were Lamphun (86.12%), Phatthalung (84.46%), Phitsanulok (83.66%), and Nakhon Pathom (83.44%).

Nakhon Nayok (82.69%) was the sixth highest, according to the EC.

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Teachers to get interest rate debt relief from co-ops

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More than half of the teachers’ cooperatives nationwide have reduced the interest on debts owed by teachers who are facing increasing financial difficulties, according to the Cooperative Promotion Department (CPD).

About 900,000 teachers collectively owe at least 1.4 trillion baht. Of this amount, 890 billion baht, or 64% of the loans, is owed to the teachers’ cooperatives, followed by 349 trillion baht to the Government Savings Bank.

The cooperatives, which are overseen by the CPD, have been trying to alleviate the teachers’ debt problems, said Wisit Srisuwn, the CPD director-general.

The department has secured financial support and know-how to sustain the cooperatives, which form an important financial lifeline for many member teachers, Mr Wisit said.

The CPD has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Education Ministry and 12 financial institutions to formulate a comprehensive plan to tackle teachers’ debt.

The plan involves revising the interest charged to teachers and bringing the rate down to around that offered by commercial banks. At the same time, the Education Ministry will advise cooperatives on how to streamline their operations.

Mr Wisit said so far, 70 of the 108 teachers’ cooperatives around the country had joined the interest reduction programme and managed to cut the rates by between 0.05% and 1%.

Of the 70 cooperatives, 11 were able to bring their interest rates below 5%, immediately benefiting at least 460,000 teachers whose debts stand at one million baht on average.

Mr Wisit said for every 1% of interest lowered, each teacher would see their debt go down by up to 10,000 baht per annum. He added that the department had issued cooperatives a guideline for assisting the teachers in controlling their debts.

He also dismissed calls by some members to be allowed to sell their shares in the cooperatives and take out their savings in them while still being able to continue borrowing from them. He said it was not legally possible to do so as the cooperatives were designed to encourage the teachers to have savings.

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Police arrest S. Korean ‘drug dealer’

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A South Korean national has been arrested after 0.5 grammes of crystal methamphetamine was found in his room.

The discovery came after authorities received a tip-off about the man’s alleged involvement in drug smuggling to South Korea, the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) said on Friday.

The Korea National Police earlier this month coordinated with the ONCB to investigate the 46-year-old man, identified as Chun Youn-bae, who had allegedly been smuggling crystal meth to South Korea in 2021-2022.

ONCB secretary-general Wichai Chaimongkhon said on Friday that the ONCB sought a warrant from Bangkok South Criminal Court on Thursday to search the suspect’s condominium in Soi Sukhumvit 21, where officials discovered 0.5 grammes of crystal meth, drug paraphernalia and plastic packaging bags hidden in his toilet.

Mr Wichai said the suspect faced charges, including possessing Type 1 narcotics without permission and overstaying his visa. He was taken to Lumpini police station for legal proceedings.

The suspect told police he had been in Thailand since 2006 for study purposes and had also run a tourist business for around five years, earning an income of around 50,000 baht.

The suspect claimed that he met a Thai woman on social media who offered to sell about 0.6 grammes of crystal meth per round that could be delivered by a motorcycle taxi driver or sent to the condo’s mailbox.

Despite the suspect refusing to provide further information about the Thai woman, Mr Wichai said that the ONCB had learnt the drug dealer’s identity and assumed Mr Chun may also have been a drug dealer, adding that the ONCB is gathering evidence to track down the remainder of the drug network members.

In a separate development, the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB) arrested four members of a cross-border drug network along the Mekong River on Tuesday and confiscated 7 million meth pills.

Pol Maj Gen Thanarat Sonkla, commander of the Narcotics Suppression Division 2, said police acted on a tip-off to tighten border security in Nakhon Phanom and Sakon Nakhon.

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Prayut to retain role as UTN’s chief strategist

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Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha won’t leave the United Thai Nation Party (UTN) and will continue as the party’s chief strategist, party leader Pirapan Salirathavi­bhaga said yesterday.

Gen Prayut will work to strengthen the UTN and take the lead in protecting the country’s three core institutions, which represent the core of the party’s ideology, said Mr Pirapan.

“Gen Prayut will continue to be with the party and work as the party’s chief strategist,” he said in a Facebook post.

And he will chair a meeting of all 36 successful election candidates on Monday at the party’s headquarters, said a source.

As a new party that had only four to five months to campaign for votes ahead of Sunday’s election, the UTN still proved strong enough to win 23 House seats in the constituency race and come third in the party-list contest with 4.67 million votes, said Mr Pirapan.

That support earned the party 13 list seats, bringing the total number of elected MPs to 36, which should be considered a success, he said, before thanking all those who had voted.

The party’s candidates came second in several constituencies, particularly in Bangkok, which reflected strong public support, he said.

“I’d like to ask all our supporters to keep faith in the party and be confident that we will move forward together for the sake of our beloved nation,” said Mr Pirapan.

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US officials warn over bird flu risk

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The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned people to stay away from wild birds and sick or dying poultry to limit the spread of the bird flu virus.

The warning was made during a virtual press briefing that was part of a Southeast Asia Regional Influenza Workshop hosted by the CDC and Thailand’s Public Health Ministry on Thursday.

Speaking at the briefing were Dr John MacArthur, Director of the CDC Southeast Asia Regional Office, and Dr Bill Davis, Regional Influenza Programme Director of CDC Thailand.

Dr Davis advised people to be especially careful about unprotected contact with sick or dying poultry and to avoid contact with wild birds as such animals could be infected with the virus even if they do not look sick.

“I think what we have seen based on the limited number of human cases that we have responded to and have investigated over the last two decades is that really, one of the really high risks is if you have a sick or dead chicken and the family decides or a person decides to slaughter it and prepare it for cooking. Slaughtering a chicken is an extremely high-risk event for H5N1 transmission,” he said.

Dr Davis said the CDC had seen an increase in cases over the past 20 or so years in poultry and wild birds in Asia, Europe and more recently in North and South America as well as Southeast Asia.

However, the CDC has seen no changes in the virus’ genetic sequencing that would make it more likely to infect humans or be able to spread from human to human.

“I think the risk we’re talking about with human infections comes from the fact that there are a lot more birds infected with H5N1, and so there’s more exposure between humans and infected birds,” Dr Davis said.

“So this is probably why we’ve seen a few more cases in Southeast Asia than in recent years,” he said.

Dr Davis said there are H5N1 vaccines for poultry, and it was up to different countries’ policies whether or not they should implement them. There are no vaccines for humans for H5N1, but research is being carried out.

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World’s longest sculpture arrives at Gardens by the Bay to raise awareness on wildlife conservation

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“In cities, we’re never going to see the wildlife. We’re so remote from any wildlife. People need connection,” said Mr Marc Schattner. 
 
“And so us doing public sculptures is a way of bringing back physically, although it’s a sculpture, bringing back those animals into an urban setting. And people want to see them.”
 
It takes about three minutes to walk the length of the sculpture. 
 
Each sculpture has a QR code that brings visitors to a page with more information about the animals’ diet, behaviour, and why the species is endangered.

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