Pattaya & Thailand’s HEADLINE NEWS from Fabulous 103fm (16 November 2022)

Pattaya & Thailand’s HEADLINE NEWS from Fabulous 103fm (16 November 2022)

As signage set up to welcome APEC participants in the capital was replaced yesterday due to two spelling mistakes, the capital braces for the summit itself. Impressive nighttime shows and displays are promised for all over the coming days, including fireworks as, behind the scenes, world leaders debate. Several roads and even MRT stations have been closed to the public, dedicated arrival lines, marked as APEC LANE at the airport have been set up for attendees and their staff, and there is a ban on demonstrations in much of the city. Security is at its highest level and will remain so until after the participants depart as Thailand hosts global leaders en masse. DRONES are banned from the area and there is a warning out for wannabe flying camera operators that encroaching in the no drone area will result in jail time. Traffic will without doubt see extra congestion and those from outside are advised to delay any journeys to the capital until next week. To lower the numbers entering the capital to work, an extended holiday for the region from today through to the weekend has been introduced for the capital, Samut Prakan and Nonthaburi.

Football fans are less than impressed as the start of the World Cup is almost upon us YET, the sports authority has been unable to negotiate an affordable price to cover all the matches here. FIFA appears unwilling to budge on price YET, once the games begin, they could get NOTHING instead of something from Thailand. Fans are keenly seeking out online viewing websites that offer the games which makes the FIFA product almost worthless. The sports authority, we are told, continues with negotiations. The price is way beyond the budget of any broadcasting company here and is based on western, not Asian budgets.

In an exclusive interview with a Thai barrister yesterday, Fab 103FM was told that following the Friday revision of regulations for marijuana use and sale here, authorities may well start to close down some if not all who retail bud based products for non medical use. Retailers are now expected to be licensed AND have records showing suppliers together with THC content checks to prove that products, sold for medical purpose, are below the 0.2 THC legal level. Growing is unaffected and the sale of all but the bud part of plants is NOT regulated currently. That interview will be available on our website by mid day today.

A new type of visa for visitors coming here for medical treatment is to be rolled out as of new year. 12 months and multiple entry, the visa is for anyone coming for extended medical treatment. They will have to prove that they are having treatment, from serious to cosmetic and have 800,000 baht banked here to cover their cost of living, together with accident insurance, which can be travel insurance.

And the Thai state will continue to subsidise the cost of Diesel at the pumps to at least mid January, keeping the cost of commercial diesel at the current price. The move, which almost negates the diesel tax revenue to the state, is seen as a boost for industry and applied to the regular diesel prices not super or similar names given to so-called enhanced diesel fuel.

Authorities here are set to clamp down on marijuana vendors , essentially of no fixed abode. Selling from stalls and vans is without doubt illegal as no form of licence can be attached to them. With fixed abodes, buildings and shops, businesses DO qualify to apply for licensing.

Flooding over the past three days due to intense storms has seen the usual areas of the city underwater despite multi-billion baht disruptions to install new drainage. Home owners and shopkeepers despair in many areas as ground floors were in some cases underwater. Those roads running to the railway road, from Soi siam to Khao talo were flooded during all the storms and saw the railway road, as usual, quickly become impassable in places for small vehicles and bikes.

Good news for the city as, with Bangkokians receiving an extra national holiday to avoid apec summit traffic jams, many will be coming here to the city of fun. Hotels report good booking rates already and traffic was on the up as of yesterday.

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