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Sponsored Chef Fabio Genghini takes over Portofino at Le Meridien Phuket for an Exclusive 2-week residency
Food lovers, prepare your taste buds for a gourmet Italian feast! From July 2 to 13, acclaimed Chef Fabio Genghini will take over Le Meridien Phuket’s beloved Italian restaurant, Portofino as a guest chef. It’s a chance for you to...
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Second by-election for District 2 voters
PHUKET: Voters in Phuket’s District 2 face a second parliamentary by-election next Saturday (April 29) after Thai Rak Thai candidate Wisut Santikul, running unopposed, again failed to meet the requirement of getting the votes of 20% of the electorate.K. Wisut received 8,920 votes, equivalent to 8.56% of the electorate.The one opponent who did step up, Prayoon Poonchan of the Pattana…
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Controversial plan for dolphins to “treat’ disabled people
CAPE PANWA: The Phuket Marine Biological Office (PMBC) is considering building a 200-million-baht “Dolphin Center” near its aquarium as a way of treating people with disabilities and promoting tourism. The project, which has already been approved in principal by Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura, would be run jointly with Danish marine biologist and dolphin expert Judith Kongsted. PMBC Director Wannakiat Thapthimsang…
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“Mick the Pom” jumps bail
PHUKET: When British murder suspect Michael John Taylor failed to make a scheduled court appearance yesterday, Phuket Provincial Court issued a warrant for his arrest and seized the land title document he posted as bail.Taylor, aka “Mick the Pom”, is on trial for the August 17, 2005, stabbing murder of his 28-year-old live-in girlfriend Jantra Weangta. He was released on…
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Angry monk beats dog-lover
PHUKET CITY: With no end in sight to Phuket’s stray dog problem and residents continuing to dump unwanted pets at temples around the island, monks find it difficult to keep temple grounds clean. On Friday morning last week, one senior monk grew so angry with an elderly dog lover who had come to his temple to feed the dogs that…
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PAD urges Phuket to vote “no vote’
SAPHAN HIN: People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders Sondhi Limthongkul, Chamlong Srimuang, Sarocha Porn-udomsuk and Suriyasai Katasila last night joined local PAD members to exhort Phuket voters to “vote for no one” in the parliamentary by-election tomorrow. The protest, the second large PAD rally in the province, got underway at dusk and finished about 2 am, attracting about 10,000 people…
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Anchalee raps Gov over hospital deal
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) is ready to buy the abandoned Phya Thai Hospital but the deal is stalled because Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura has not yet approved a request for 215 million baht in bank loans to seal the deal, says OrBorJor President Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutr.Speaking at a press conference at the OrBorJor offices, K. Anchalee said, “[The Governor]…
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Princess to open tsunami aid HQ
PHUKET: HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will pay a Royal Visit to Phuket next week to preside over the official opening ceremony of her Special Task Unit (STU) building in Tambon Wichit on Tuesday morning.The STU is dedicated to supporting the long-term recovery of tsunami victims in all six Andaman coast provinces. Funded jointly by Her Royal Highness’s Fund and…
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Election observers “impressed with polling’
PHUKET, PHANG NGA: Girawadee Khao-orn, one of the eight UN-affiliated election monitors who came to Phuket to check out yesterday’s poll, told the Gazette today that the observers were impressed with how voting was conducted in Phuket and Phang Nga.“We could see the efforts made by the Regional Election Commission, which tried to serve people in all areas, even Koh…
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Funeral firefight
An all-night funeral vigil ended in a hail of gunfire when a fight broke out because one of the guests was unable to speak Southern Thai – after being ordered to by a local drunk. The unfortunate incident took place at the funeral of Aree Khaemungkhalo, whose pals were up drinking through the night of April 2-3 in order to…
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Double your pleasure
Wichai Hengjarernsook is in the junk business, and so not a man to overlook a bargain when he sees it. The 24-year-old native of Samut Sakhon’s Baan Paew District, where women are far-famed for beauty, couldn’t decide which of two identical twin sisters in his village he wanted to wed. So, being an astute businessman, he popped the question to…
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His wife’s a real bitch
Disappointment famously prompts extreme measures in victims. Disappointed of proper stage effects for his fiddling, Nero burned Rome; of artistic ambitions, Van Gogh cut off his ear; and of the American colonies, George III went mad. In Lampang Province, a 39-year-old man disappointed with women fell in love with a real bitch, – a two-year-old poodle named Olé – and…
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Thanyarat wins Senatorial race
PHUKET: Thanyarat “Gee” Achariyachai is Phuket’s first woman Senator, after winning yesterday’s Senatorial election by a convincing margin.K. Thanyarat, a former Juvenile Court Judge and wife of former Phuket Chamber of Commerce President Pamuke Achariyachai, polled 34,142 votes.In second place was Prawat Suwannadithakul with 28,539, followed by Dr Prasit Koeysiripong with 14,198 votes.Vote counts for the other candidates in the…
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Tough itinerary for UN poll-watchers
PATONG: A group of eight UN-affiliated election experts from around the world arrived this morning to observe tomorrow’s Senate election in Phuket.Their program is a full one. This afternoon, the group observed the distribution of ballot sheets and other election materials as well as preparation of polling booths and vote-counting areas in Phuket’s three districts. Tonight they are due to…
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Songkran road death toll totals five – or six
PHUKET: Road accidents claimed the lives of five people in the province during Songkran. Or six, depending on how one counts.Officially, five people died on the roads between April 7 and April 16, officers from the Phuket Office for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (ODPM) said at a press conference this morning. This was two higher than last year’s figure and…
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Phang Nga tsunami victims “have all been helped’
KHAO LAK: All Phang Nga residents who were in need of financial aid after the tsunami have received it, either through government assistance or in the form of private-sector donations, a senior provincial official has told the Gazette.“We can say that 100% of the people who lost homes and fishing boats have had them replaced,” Vice-Governor Opas Svetamani told the…
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Four candidates qualify for April 23 poll
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Election Commission (PEC) has announced that four people have been declared eligible to run in the April 23 parliamentary by-elections in Phuket, two in each voting district.The Head of the Phuket Election Commission (PEC), Dr Prapa Kayee, told the Gazette today that the candidates for District 1 will be Dr Sriyada Palimapan of the Thai Rak…
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Gazette offices closed for Songkran
PHUKET: The offices of the Phuket Gazette will be closed over the Songkran holidays, from Thursday April 13 to Sunday April 16 inclusive.As a result, there will be no hard-copy issue of the Phuket Gazette on April 22. The next issue will hit the newsstands on April 29.For those addicted to news, stories will still be posted in the Gazette…
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Islandia sold for B1.05bn
PHUKET: Central Hotels & Resorts and an unnamed investor have created a joint venture company named Karon Phuket Hotel Co and have bought the 316-room Islandia Park Resort in Karon. It will become the third Central property in the Karon area. The amount paid was not revealed by the partners, but hotel industry publications said that they paid a total…
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Property expo hits the mark
PHUKET CITY: Properties with a total value of more than 300 million baht were reserved at the Property Investment Exhibition 2006 (PIE), which drew to a close at Central Festival Phuket yesterday, said the organizer.Thanet Traiwut, Managing Director of exhibition organizer Delice Thai, said, “The exhibition was a success. About 80% of visitors were looking for a house and 20%…
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Drugs haul at Kalim Beach bar
KALIM: Undercover police armed with a warrant arrested suspected drug dealer Boonyarit Charnpraneet, 46, in the evening of April 7 following a tip-off from a member of the public. The arrest took place at the bar – the name of which police declined to disclose to the Gazette – owned by Boonyarit at Kalim Beach. The police also managed to…
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Rougher seas ahead for Phuket’s dive industry
PHUKET CITY: A newly formed committee met at Phuket Provincial Hall on April 5 to discuss recent developments in the dive industry, particularly accusations leveled at the industry that some dive operators have been evading tax and employing staff without work permits.Phuket’s Chief Administrative Officer (Palad) Nivit Aroonrat, claimed after the meeting that Phuket’s dive industry is “concealing” facts and…
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1,000 incentives delegates at Sheraton generate B150m
CHERNG TALAY: A thousand Australians descended on the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket on April 8 for the biggest incentive program yet hosted in the Laguna complex.The organizers, Hagemeyer Electrical of Australia, a subsidiary of Dutch trading giant Hagemeyer, estimate that the three-day program, which brought 850 of the company’s top customers to Thailand, injected some 150 million baht into the…
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Six apply to run in April 23 by-election
PHUKET: Six people have applied to run in the April 23 parliamentary by-elections in Phuket, four of them in District 1, which covers Phuket City and the immediate area, and two in District 2, covering the rest of the island. The Phuket Election Commission (PEC) will take just a few days to determine which of the candidates will qualify to…
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THAI cuts fares, boosts flights for Songkran
BANGKOK: Thai Airways International (THAI) is introducing discounted domestic air tickets to and from Bangkok during the Songkran period, starting today and ending next Monday. The discounted destinations are Chiang Mai, Phuket, Haad Yai, Krabi, Surat Thani, Ubon Ratchathani, Khon Kaen, Chiang Rai, Krabi, Phitsanulok and Udon Thani. Vasing Kittikul, THAI’s Executive Vice President said that passengers buying the discounted…
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Easing of 80-meter rule back on the agenda
PHUKET: The Provincial Natural Resources and Environment Office (PNREO) has proposed changes to the current law limiting the height of construction in Phuket to no higher than 80 meters above sea level.A five-year ban on building above 80 meters was enforced in 1997 as a way of preventing landslides. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) extended the ban…
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French tourist dies in fall from rocks
NAI HARN: A French tourist died on Wednesday morning after he apparently slipped while climbing rocks at Nai Harn Beach, plunging onto submerged rocks below.Chalong Police Inspector Pol Lt Col Chockchai Sutthimek identified the victim as Gregory Eric Muguet, 34. The accident occurred after the victim went out for a morning walk and swim with his mother, Col Chockchai said.…
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Songkran aim: no more than 4 road deaths
PHUKET: As in previous years, the province will set up police checkpoints around the island during the Songkran Holiday period in a bid to keep road deaths and injuries to a minimum. At a conference at Phuket Provincial Hall on Monday, members of the media were each handed a 24-page stack of documents prepared by the Phuket Office for Disaster…
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Democrats see Thaksin ‘resignation’ as a ploy
PHUKET: The island’s Democrats have announced that they will boycott new elections called for April 23 because they are not satisfied with Caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s pledge not to accept the post of Prime Minister in the next Parliament.In a dramatic speech broadcast live last night by all TV channels, the PM announced that he would not be Prime…
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All bets are off as gambling tops arrests stats again
PHUKET: Gambling, with 162 arrests made between March 1 and 25, has again topped the monthly arrests statistics, the Phuket Provincial Police announced today. Of these, 25 people were arrested for being involved in the sale of illegal lottery tickets.There were three cases of murder – including that of Preecha “Ko Noi” Kraitas (see also page 1). Three arrests made,…
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Preecha assassin still at large
PHUKET CITY: The hunt continues for Samrerng Klaising, the gunman wanted for assassinating prominent Phuket businessman Preecha “Ko Noi” Kraitas, but so far without result.However, Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pol Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth said yesterday that police are making progress in their investigation.Samrerng, originally from Petchaburi Province, and his driver in the shooting, whom police have yet to name,…
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