Brief Thai news – December 30

The rainy season will start earlier than usual next year and it will be accompanied by heavy rains due to La Nina, the Meteorological Department predicts. Flooding is likely again. Rains can also be expected from January to April.

Anond Snidvongs, director of the START climate bureau and who has proven to be a reliable forecaster, believes that the Strategic Committee for Water Resources Management should take measures quickly to prevent flooding, because the rainy season will start in five months. Government services should concentrate on maintenance, says he. Five things are important: weir gates, flood defences, canals and rivers, water pumping stations and water storage areas. 'We have to start working now', says Anond. 'Any delay could lead to a repeat of the 2011 flood catastrophe.'

– Cambodia has proposed to exchange Veera Somkomenkid, co-leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD, yellow shirts) and his secretary for Cambodians who live in Thailand being in prison. Both have been imprisoned in Phnom Penh for a year; they were sentenced to 8 and 6 years in prison respectively for espionage and illegal entry into Cambodian territory. The offer was made during a meeting between Minister Surapong Towijakchaikul (Foreign Affairs) and his Cambodian counterpart and Prime Minister Hun Sen.

– The transfer of a debt of 1,14 trillion baht from the government to the Bank of Thailand will not go ahead if the country is disadvantaged as a result, says Minister Kittiratt Na Ra-Nong, who is responsible for economic policy as deputy prime minister. On Tuesday, the cabinet decided to transfer the debt to free up space for spending on water management. The Bank of Thailand strongly opposes it; the operation strains the bank's finances and undermines its credibility, the BoT governor says. The debt consists of obligations of the Financial Institutions Development Fund (FIDF), contracted during the 1997 financial crisis to support ailing banks and financial institutions.

– As long as I am Minister of Transport, we will never return the market to the municipality, says Minister Sukumpol Suwannatat (Transport) following the operational transfer of Chatuchak weekend market from the municipality of Bangkok to the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). That statement is not so strange, because exploiting it yourself is good for an annual income of 420 million baht. [At least according to this post. Previous posts mention different amounts.]

On January 2, the operating agreement between the SRT, owner of the land, and the municipality of Bangkok expires after 25 years. In recent months, the municipality has strongly opposed termination and recently merchants protested against the takeover. But it is all to no avail, because last Tuesday the cabinet gave the green light.

– It has taken a while since he turned himself in to the police at the beginning of this month, but red shirt leader Arisman Pongruangrong is finally a free man. On Wednesday, the Songkhla Provincial Court released him on bail after the Supreme Court released him after three requests. In Bangkok, Arisman is on trial for terrorism; in Songkhla for libel.

– The brother of Udon Kraiwatnussorn, who was killed on Sunday, has handed over a petition to the Vice-President of Parliament requesting that the immunity of Democratic MP Khanchit Thapsuwan, who is suspected of the murder, be lifted. According to the brother, himself a former parliamentarian, the suspect and his family put witnesses under pressure. The father is said to have visited the crime scene, a gas station in Samut Sakhon, on Wednesday and threatened eyewitnesses. An arrest warrant has been issued against Khanchit, but due to his parliamentary immunity he cannot be remanded in custody.

– Domestic and foreign companies are offered support by the government to reinsure their property should insurers refuse to insure them or charge higher premiums because of the risk of flooding. The cabinet has formed a fund of 50 billion baht for this purpose. However, according to Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong (Trade), the chance that the fund will be used is extremely small given the efforts of the government for new water management projects.

– Pheu Thai MP Sa-nguan Pongmanee says he has collected 50.000 signatures from residents in Lamphun in support of amending the constitution through an assembly of citizens (1 per province and 20 academics). In Pheu Thai, voices have been raised to omit the assembly (time-consuming and expensive) and to amend the constitution directly through parliamentary consideration.

– The president of the Constitutional Court does not think it is necessary to change the constitution, because holes in the law can always be found and exploited. The key to solving problems, he says, is the pursuit of better morals.

The president also opposes amendment of Article 112 (lese-majeste) of the Criminal Code. If this article is deleted, Article 8 of the Constitution must also be repealed. 'It stipulates the King shall be enthroned in a position of revered worship and shall not be violated and no person shall expose the King to any sort of accusation or action.'

– First some corrections: The prediction of the seer Pla Bu about the collapse of the Bhumibol dam on December 31, 2011 at 22 pm, he made at the age of 6, 37 years ago and not 38 years ago, as the newspaper reported yesterday. He predicted that before he died, so we can assume he passed away at the age of 6, although the paper does not state that. The forecast has been circulating on the internet for some time now and is the talk of the day. The director general of the Mineral Resources Department has called on the population not to panic. He calls the prediction "baseless." The province and the electricity company have organized a countdown party on the dam.

– The Civil Court has issued an important ruling for companies that were set on fire or looted last May. If insurance company Muang Thai Insurance does not appeal, it must pay food company Emtham Co 16,5 million baht. According to the insurers, the damage is not covered, but the administrative court apparently thinks otherwise.

– A former police officer was arrested because he shot at other cars from his pick-up truck on Ratchadaphisekweg on Friday. Two people were injured and six cars were damaged. The policeman was fired last month for alleged involvement in drug trafficking. He also had a history of drug use.

– A police officer was killed when he was hit by a motorcycle. The driver was seriously injured. The agent was manning a checkpoint in Lam Luk Ka (Pathum Thani), which was lurking for street racers. Three people have been arrested, including two underage girls.

– A thumbs up to the government for countering drugs and a thumbs down to its management of the floods. That's what respondents say in a poll by Abac. 2.104 people in 17 provinces were interviewed. Respondents were also unhappy about the government's performance on the cost of living and internal conflicts within the government. In addition to the fight against drugs, they found the relationship with neighboring countries and the organization of festivities on the occasion of Father's Day positive.

– The quality of air and water has improved, but waste is a major problem. According to the Department of Pollution Control's annual report. The average amount of particles in the air of major provinces and Bangkok has dropped from 41,5 micrograms per cubic meter last year to 37,6 this year. The amount of waste, on the other hand, rose by 5,5 percent to 0,84 million tons. Bangkok alone accounts for 9.500 tons per day (plus 8 pc). Only 26 percent of household waste is recycled. The target is 30 percent.

Water quality has increased by 30 percent this year compared to 19 percent last year. The long-lasting floods only negatively affected the water quality for a short time.

Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate in Rayong is still plagued by an excessive concentration of VOCs (volatile organic compounds), such as benzene, butadiene and chloroform.

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