- Bangkok News
Former Deputy Bangkok Governor says the city has already spent most of the 2022 budget
The Deputy Leader of the Democrat Party and former deputy Bangkok governor, Samart Ratchapolsitte (2004 – 2006), said Bangkok has only of 94 million baht left in its budget, and it might be insufficient for the new Bangkok governor Chandchart Sittiphun to achieve his announced policies. According to the media, Bangkok receives a budget of around 80 billion baht per…
- Pattaya News
4 Thai Police under investigation after sending woman to jail for growing 1 cannabis plant
Four Thai police officers from Sri Racha Police Station in Chon Buri have been sidelined from their present positions as senior police conduct an investigation. The 4 police arrested a woman who grew one cannabis plant at home and sent her to jail for a night. 56 year old Pornpimon Prakobpon was arrested at a rented house in the Sri…
- Politics News
Pattaya City Mayor election to be re-held in some districts after ballot papers go missing
Chon Buri Provincial Election Commission has announced the cancellation of the Pattaya City mayor’s election result on May 22 because ballot papers had gone missing from polling stations in 2 sub-districts. The new election in those sub-districts will be held on June 12. After 10 years of suspension of mayoral elections, the Pattaya City Mayor election was held on May…
- Pattaya News
More than 200 CCTV cameras installed at Koh Larn in Pattaya for public safety
More than 200 CCTV cameras have been installed at 7 beaches and “risk spots” at Koh Larn Island in Chon Buri to improve the safety of its residents and tourists. The Deputy Secretary Permanent of Pattaya, Kiattisak Siwongchai, today explained that the CCTV cameras, which will be fully operational next month, were installed to ensure the safety of its residents…
- Tourism News
Transport Ministry expects 22 million travellers will pass through Thai airports in 2022
The Transport Minister, Saksayam Chidchob, says every airport in Thailand is ready to welcome more travellers entering from June 1. The Minister also set a target expecting 22 million travellers to enter this year. So far, the number has just clicked over the 1 million mark (mid-May). Yesterday, Saksayam visited Suvarnabhumi Airport for for an official before the changes to…
- Thailand News
Deputy PM insists using Thai numerals to keep “uniqueness”
Following a campaign on Change.org to remove Thai numbers from official documents, Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam said it was “an absurd controversial topic”. He insisted that Thai numbers might be complicated, but it is the way to maintain Thai uniqueness. Thai numerals are written in Thai script in formal documents, not the Arabic numerals used in many other countries. A Thai…
- Thailand News
PM Prayut insists no plans to drop face-mask requirement in Thailand
Thailand’s PM and Defense Minister, Prayut Chan-o-cha, insists that Thailand has no plans to drop the requirement to wear face-masks. The PM asked the spokesperson to emphasise this point to the residents saying wearing masks was still “a necessary behaviour”. Last week, the Permanent Secretary of the Public Health Ministry, Kiattiphum Wongrajit, said that the ministry proposed to adjust the…
- Central Thailand News
Teenagers assault family car in central Thailand, injuring 3 year old
A group of teenagers have assaulted a family of 3 in the central province of Samut Prakan. The teenagers were “throwing a party” in the middle of road at a housing estate in Bang Sao Thong district, and refused to move out of the way of the family’s car. The teenagers threw a rock through the car window, injuring the…
- Road deaths
UPDATE: Compensation promised after teenage passenger killed in police chase
Following last week’s report of a teenager who was killed after the motorbike she was a passenger on crashed into a police pickup, the police officers have now promised to pay compensation to the victim’s family. No charges have been filed against the police at this stage as the case is still under investigation. On May 27, a car accident…
- Crime News
Thai woman allegedly murdered in Oman after being thrown from 4th floor of condo
A Thai woman is claiming that her Omani husband murdered her Thai friend. She claims her friend was thrown from the 4th floor of a condominium in Oman after fighting with her husband. Last Friday, the Facebook user Pawarisa Oil posted a sympathy message to her friend, saying that her friend was thrown from a building in Oman. Pawarisa said…
- Cannabis News
Smoking cannabis recreationally is still illegal, warns Department of Public Health
Cannabis smoke is a “public nuisance” and smoking it recreationally – at home or in public – is illegal, warns Thailand’s Department of Public Health. From June 9, growing cannabis plants at home will become legal, but smoking cannabis recreationally will remain a punishable offence. The only prerequisite to legally growing cannabis at home, from June 9, is downloading and…
- South Thailand News
Student hit by motorbike on zebra crossing in front of school in Trang
A female student has been hit by a motorbike while crossing the road at a zebra crossing with a group of friends and teachers in front of a school in the southern province of Trang. The motorbike rider stopped only a minute to check that the young girl was OK then immediately drove away. The dashcam video of the student…
- Northern Thailand News
Murder-suicide in north east Thailand
A man has shot his pregnant stepdaughter dead and then committed suicide at a house in the northeastern province of Buriram. The stepdaughter had just married her husband 7 days before the incident. Relatives have refused to provide additional details to the media at this stage. Yesterday, an emergency team from Hin Lek Fire Police Station was called to a…
- Thailand News
Thailand to borrow 20 billion baht to maintain fuel subsidies
The Office of Fuel Fund plans to borrow 20 billion baht to top up the country’s oil price subsidies as residents and different departments are being increasingly affected by the rising oil price. The fund is seeking inbound loans from the Government Saving Bank and Krungthai Bank. The details are expected to be clear at the end of this month.…
- Thailand News
Thais in Japan protest in front of PM Prayut’s hotel
Thais from a group named UDD Japan gathered in front of a hotel where Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha was staying to protest. The group demanded that the PM resign and release the young political activists out of jail. PM Prayut is in Japan to join the 27th International Conference on the Future of Asia or Nikkei Forum, held until the…
- Phuket News
Phuket looks for new groundwater sources to cope with acute water shortages
The Department of Groundwater Resources started a project to explore new groundwater sources in Phuket to cope with the ongoing water scarcity problem in the province. The project is also expected to be a model for other Thai islands to study groundwater resources and water management. The Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Varawut Silpa-Archa, assigned the Groundwater Resources Department…
- Politics News
Thai Parliament app launched to remind forgetful MPs
To cope with meetings failing because of absence and lack of quorums, the Secretariat of The House of Representatives has developed the ‘TH Parliament’ mobile app to notify the MPs of upcoming meetings. The ‘innovation’ presumes that MPs have failed to turn up because they simply forgot… that’s usually not the case. Yesterday, Nattakarn Chochana, announced that the Information Technology…
- South Thailand News
UPDATE: Cafe serves drinks in “penis” bags in southern Thailand
UPDATE: After the eye-catching penis-tea-bag went viral on social media, Chadeen cafe in Songkhla province, southern Thailand, have announced that they are discontinuing the bag moving forward… “We have to apologise to all customers. We will not sell the [penis] bag anymore. It involves many sensitive issues. Thank you everyone for all your interest and support.” Chadeen might not be…
- Road deaths
French woman dies riding bicycle in central Thailand
A young French woman was killed in a road accident in Ayutthaya province in central Thailand yesterday evening. The 26 year old tourist got confused at an intersection when a green and red light shone at the same time, leading her to drive into oncoming traffic. A man driving a sedan through the green light couldn’t break in time, striking…
- South Thailand News
Family moves out after 14 cobras invade house in southern Thailand
A family in Songkhla province in southern Thailand moved out of their house on Monday after they discovered 14 cobras living inside with them. The family kept discovering more and more cobras over a period of four days until they had enough, and decided to leave for good. The 43 year old renter of the house, Erawan, said he found…
- Thailand News
Student slams monkey to the ground after it bit him at school in central Thailand
A monkey bit a 15 year old student at a school in the central province of Phetchaburi, so he picked it up by the tail and slammed it to the ground. It might not seem nice, but it was an act of self-defence. In the video, numerous monkeys can be seen freely roaming around Prommanusorn School in Mueang district. Perhaps…
- Bangkok News
Thai PM Prayut questions Chadchart’s 200+ policies for Bangkok
He’s only been elected for 3 days and the sniping has already started. Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has told Thai media that he is ready to work with the incoming Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt. But the PM says he’s curious how Chadchart will achieve the 200 policies he promoted during the election campaign. The PM said Chadchart would be “more powerful…
- South Thailand News
Cafe serves drinks in “penis” bags in southern Thailand
A cafe in Songkhla province, southern Thailand, has come up with a bizarre idea to attract customers… and it seems to be working. Everything about the cafe is completely normal, aside from the fact that they serve drinks in bags that look like penises. Thirsty anyone? Chadeen cafe serves Thai milk tea, green tea, coffee and fruity sodas. With a…
- Thailand News
Thailand exempts cryptocurrency transfer VAT until 2023
The Royal Thai Government Gazette has formally announced a VAT exemption for transferring cryptocurrency from now until the end of 2023. The cabinet had approved the exemption of the value added tax, or VAT, for transferring cryptocurrency or digital tokens in March. Yesterday, the decision was passed into Thai law and will be in effect from yesterday until December 31,…
- Economy News
Large banana plantation near Bangkok goes viral, Thai netizens say owner wants to avoid land tax
One of the biggest exhibition centres and event venues, Impact Arena, in the central province of Nonthaburi, basically just north of Bangkok, is showing off its large banana plantation on their official Facebook page. The page claims the CEO desires to increase green spaces for people, but Thai netizens have figured out it’s just a way the controlling company is…
- Northern Thailand News
Thai cult’s food products tested – feces, bacteria and mould detected
An update on the hidden cult commune in the Isaan province of Chaiyaphum… Local health authorities found the cult was operating a food businesses and seized all of the products for further investigation. The test results showed that the food samples from the group contained excessive amounts of mould, Coliform and bacteria, usually found in feces. At the start of…
- Phuket News
Phuket opens new prison facility with more space as demand increases
The Department of Correction has officially opened a new prison in Phuket in response to the increasing number of inmates. The new prison has much more space compared to the former, notoriously small, prison facility in Phuket Town. The inmates have now been moved from the old prison to their new, hopefully temporary, home. The prison has nearly 3,000 inmates…
- Thailand News
Commerce Ministry says Thais should sell to Chinese customers on TikTok
The Ministry of Commerce has come up with a cunning plan that Thai people could make more money by selling products, especially clothes, to Chinese people via the popular TikTok app. The ministry also came up with tips and ideas for Thai sellers who want to win new Chinese customers on TikTok. Yesterday, the Director-General of the Department of International…
- Thailand News
11 Malaria patients found in Thailand’s east, blood from monkeys on Koh Chang tested
The eastern Thai province of Trat has reported 11 malaria patients, 9 from Koh Chang and 2 from the Bor Rai district. The type of malaria found in the residents is the parasite plasmodium knowlesi. The disease was first detected in the local monkey population and then transmitted to humans by mosquitoes. Blood from random monkeys on Koh Chang has…
- Thailand News
Thailand’s genomics centre to launch monkeypox tests in next 2 weeks
The Centre of Medical Genomics from Ramathibodi Hospital is developing a Monkeypox test from the genetic codes obtained from Portugal and Belgium. The test will provide the result within 24 hours, and it is expected to be ready for use in the next 2 weeks. The official Facebook page of the Centre of Medical Genomics announced on May 21 that…
