Thailand News Today | Anti-corruption cop sets new standards – How rich is ‘unusually rich’?

Anti-corruption cop sets new standards – How rich is ‘unusually rich’? Thailand News Today

All provincial administrations have been ordered to submit a list of suspected drug
dealers and addicts in their respective provinces to the Ministry of Interior by the
end of this month. The information will be added to its main database, for use in
developing effective measures to deal with all aspects of the drug problem.
Interior Permanent Secretary Suttipong Juljarern said yesterday (Wednesday) that
all provincial administrations have also been instructed to provide updates about
the drug situation on weekly basis and to hold discussions periodically with
people’s networks on rehabilitation programs for drug addicts and on the
prevention of drug abuse.
To begin with, he said that all provincial administrations must conduct random
tests of their staff, to find out how many are addicted so that they can be sent for
rehabilitation.
Ideally, Suttipong said, there should be one drug rehabilitation facility in each
district or sub-district, so addicts can be rehabilitated and kept under watch, adding
that a campaign must be launched nationwide to educate the public on the dangers
of narcotics and to seek their help by informing on illegal drug trading activities or
addiction in their neighbourhoods.
He stressed the important role of communities in addressing drug addiction and in
offering moral support to addicts, so they can quit their habit.
The government’s get-tough policy on drug dealing and addiction follows the mass
shooting at a child care center in the north-eastern province of Nong Bua Lamphu
on October 6th, by a former police officer who had a record of drug abuse since
adolescence. 38 people, mostly young children, died in the incident, including the
perpetrator, his wife and their son.
The tragedy prompted public demands for the government to get tough on guns
and illegal drugs.

Prayat Puangjumpa, has been charged by the commission with being unusually rich.

Prayat Puangjumpa, a former deputy secretary-general of the National Counter-
Corruption Commission (NACC), has been charged by the commission with being
unusually rich.
Unusually rich for whom? An ordinary Thai citizen? Unusually rich for someone
on his salary? Unusually rich for a senior Thai law enforcer?
The NACC is charged with combating corruption by high-ranking government
officials and politicians.
Prayat, who was fired in August, is accused of making a false declaration to
conceal the origins of his loot. He has since been indicted by the Supreme Court’s
criminal division for holders of political positions.
Prayat allegedly has 658 million baht (US$17 million) concealed in various
financial nooks and crannies, and no watertight idea nor explanation of how it got
there. For a simple public servant like Prayat, it can be tough to keep track of all
your overseas assets.
It will come as shock to absolutely no one that the undeclared assets were found to
be held by Prayat’s wife, Thanipa. The fragrant lady’s assets include 20,000 shares
in Palm Biz Corp. worth 2 million baht (US$53,000), bank accounts in London
branch containing UK£238,000 (about 10 million baht, US$276,000), and an
absolutely fabulous townhouse on Kensington High Street, London, worth an
estimated £4.5 million (200 million baht, US$5.3 billion). Kensington High Street
is an affluent area in west London, known for its excellent shopping, as well as
museums, galleries, restaurants and nightlife. Quite frankly, it’s a home of which
any oligarch could be rightly proud.
One of many “Billionaires’ Rows” in Kensington and Chelsea where disgraced
Thai officials rub shoulders with rock stars and the deposed leaders of minor
republics.
It’s a common practice among Thailand’s most successful not only to occupy
government positions but to make hilarious claims about their relatives earning and
spending powers. Thailand News Today

Hill road between Phuket town and Patong has been reopened for motorcycles

The damaged hill road between Phuket town and Patong has been reopened for
motorcycles, assisting commuters between Kathu and the popular beach area.
Provincial governor Narong Woonciew on Wednesday ordered the reopening of
Road 4029 for motorcyclists, several days after it reopened for foot traffic.
Road 4029 connects Phuket's downtown and Patong via Kathu. Torrential rain
caused a landslide that undermined the road's foundation on part of the hill
section, resulting in its closure last week.
At least 10,000 local residents have used the road every day since it reopened for
pedestrians on Sunday, officials said.
The decision to allow two-wheel vehicles to use the road was made on Wednesday
after the Highways Department assessed the safety of the road surface and
foundation.
The road will be repaired before being reopened to all vehicles. Officials said this
could take at least another week.

Officials drug stray dogs for visit of PM Prayut in Sing Buri

Animal rights activists and Thai netizens were outraged after learning stray dogs in
the central province of Sing Buri were drugged so that Prime Minister Prayut
Chan-o-cha could visit the area without any drama.
PM Prayut visited Sing Buri on Monday, October 24, to check the province’s flood
situation and offer his support to victims affected by the floods. The PM visited 10
households in the Mueng district by boat and continued to Pikun Thong Temple by
car to meet locals in the Tha Chang district.
One reporter from Thairath posted a video of a stray dog ​​wobbling along the street
at Pikun Thong Temple on Twitter, claiming that the dog had just awoken after
being doped for the PM’s visit.
The video went viral and Thai Twitter users criticized those responsible. Thai
netizens said the visits of politicians should not be a burden on locals or the
animals. Some commented that drugging dogs was too much and unacceptable,
adding the animals never go near crowds to hurt or annoy anyone.
Other netizens did not believe the claim and condemned the reporter for making up
the story to destroy the reputation of the PM and the government.
However, Sing Buri Provincial Livestock Department later admitted that they did
anesthetize 11 stray dogs at a nearby temple. The official reported that they did it
to keep the dogs safe. The official added that anaesthetizing the animals would
prevent the dogs from attacking anyone and also keep them from being hurt by
people who might feel threatened. Thailand News Today
Thairath reported that this is not the first time Thai officials anesthetized dogs just
to welcome a politician. Dogs at another temple in Sing Buri, named Wat Phra
Non Chak Si Worawihan, were drugged nine years ago in 2013 when former Prime
Minister Yingluck Chinnawat visited the temple. Thailand News Today

Angry elephant smashes pickup truck windscreen in northeast Thailand Thailand News Today

On Tuesday, an angry elephant who escaped from Khao Yai National Park
smashed a pickup truck’s windscreen with its tusks in northeast Thailand.
Fearing for the safety of tourists, a brave national park official parked his pickup in
front of the elephant to stop him from going any further.
The Khao Yai National Park chief, Chaiya Huayhongthong, reported at 9am today
that a well-known, badly behaved, male elephant repeatedly rammed its tusks into
the pickup’s windscreen until it smashed yesterday afternoon.
Chief Chaiya said that the elephant – known as plai dur (“Naughty Boy”) – had
been tied up since he killed a tourist at the national park three years ago.
Yesterday, Naughty Boy broke out of his collar and escaped from the national
park. He walked down the road heading towards Haew Su Wat Waterfall in Pak
Chong district of Nakhon Ratchasima province.
The Head of the Wild Elephant Care and Safety Team, Suttiphon Sinkha, followed
the elephant down the road. He rang Chief Chaiya to tell him that the elephant was
displaying “irritable behaviour” and had a wound on his lower left hind leg.
Fearing that the angry elephant would attack tourists, brave Suttiphon parked his
pickup truck to block Naughty Boy’s path, hoping he would turn around and head
back into the forest.
Suttiphon narrowly escaped the truck in time before distressed Naughty Boy
smashed the windscreen with his two-foot-long tusks.
Veterinarians administered anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers to the injured
elephant’s leg to help heal his wound and alleviate his symptoms.
The national park advises tourists to keep a distance of at least 50 metres from a
wild elephant if they come across one. Thailand News Today

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