April 12, 2021 Thai Enquirer Summary Covid-19 News The 3rd wave of the Covid-19 outbreak has now spread from entertainment hubs in Bangkok to 70 provinces, with new daily record of nearly 1,000, bringing the overall tally to more than 32,000. A senior virologist warned that the number of daily new cases could jump further after Songkran Festival. The numbers have been rising at neck breaking pace and yesterday’s numbers reached 967 new infections. The outbreak has prompted a rare reaction from the really HiSo elites of Thailand on the lack of vaccination process and the procurement of the vaccines by Thailand. Although none of the top 50 richest families in the country have openly said that they are opposed to this government, privately they have said that they are not happy with the decisions being made by the government in handling the Covid-19 situation. The government announced 967 new infections, bringing the overall tally to 32,625. Chiang Mai alone flagged a further 281 cases that were to be included in today’s national figures. Dr Sophon Iamsirithaworn, the deputy director-general of the Disease Control Department, has signalled the possible closure of more nightlife entertainment venues in 36 provinces to further reduce the risk of local spread of Covid-19, on top of those in 41 provinces. The closure of entertainment venues in 41 provinces can help reduce the spread of the outbreak by 25 per cent, Dr Sophon said, adding that his department is keeping a close watch on the situation and whether it is necessary to shut down night clubs, pubs, bars, and live music venues in other 36 provinces. He said its epidemiology division in collaboration with the International Health Policy Program had come up with a mathematical model to predict the number of people who could become infected per day if safety measures were not observed. In a worst-case scenario with no disease control measures in place, 28,678 people could be infected per day. However, the average number of daily cases under this scenario would be 9,140, Dr Sopon added, while noting the lowest number could be 1,308 if people do not comply with safety measures. Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha did not issue any ban on inter-provincial travel when he announced measures last week to combat the spread of the virus. Gen Prayut has appointed a new committee for the private purchase of vaccines, in addition to the government’s vaccine purchases, but without Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on the committee. Anutin came out to shrug off reports that he is not sitting on the committee and said the Covid-19 outbreak is an enormous task for the Public Health Ministry to tackle alone. It is said that Dr Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn, advisor to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), was appointed to head the committee. Meanwhile, Bangkok Criminal Court has sentenced the managers of 2 nightclubs, Krysal Club Thonglor 25 and Emerald Club Thonglor 13, to which the outbreak was traced to 2 months in jail without suspension for violating emergency measures instituted last year covering health regulations to guard against the virus, said Metropolitan Police Sub- division 5 commander Pol Maj Gen Sopon Sarapat. o He said that the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) has set up a committee to consider further closure of entertainment nightspots in Bangkok in addition to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA)’s shutdown order for 14 days. Reports said the MPB proposed to the committee that nightclubs that caused the spread of the virus should be held liable by the closure of 5 years including Krystal Club and Emerald Club. Following the court’s decision to jail the 2 managers of the 2 nightclubs, former politician and media firebrand Chuvit Kamolvisit called on police to take action against the owners of the clubs, not their managers. Chuvit said he knew that the owner of the 2 nightclubs is called “Odd Miyabi” whose real name starts with the initial “K”. He said this man is a major shareholder of Krystal Club among other shareholders prominent in the online gambling industry. “Odd Miyabi” is also a sole owner and shareholder of Emerald Club. “Odd Miyabi” used a lucrative profit from Krystal Club to build Emerald Club at the age of 30-something, Chuvit said urging police to look into his capital funding for these nightclubs which should be worth several hundred million baht. State Railway of Thailand (SRT) assistant governor Anan Phonimdaeng is the latest senior SRT executive tested positive for Covid-19 following SRT governor Nirut Maneephan who previously tested positive for the virus. Transport officials were forced to take the Covid-19 tests after Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob was confirmed to have contracted the virus last week. Dr Thiravat Hemachudh, head of the Emerging Diseases Science Centre at Chulalongkorn University, posted photos of a party on a Phuket Beach on his Facebook with a dire consequence. Dr Thiravat is now unsure if the new round of the outbreak could be contained easily after he previously predicted that the outbreak should subside in the next 3 weeks because Thai people fear of death. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Economic News The Ministry of Finance mulls plans to move around 250 billion baht left from the government’s 1-trillion baht borrowing plan to combat the fresh round of the Covid-19 outbreak. Krisada Chinavicharana, permanent secretary for finance, said the ministry is currently evaluating the impact of the new round of the outbreak in order to form additional relief measures. As for the economic situation, the ministry still has the leftover budget of 250 billion baht from the 1-trillion baht loans for economic rehabilitation. The Finance Ministry’s Fiscal Policy Office is expected to revise economic forecast at the end of April amid the resurgence of the outbreak after the FPO has revised down its economic growth forecast to 2.8 per cent in the last revision in early February. Anusorn Tamajai, an economist and former director of the Public Policy Development Office at the Finance Ministry, warned the 3rd wave of the outbreak may lead Thailand’s economic growth in the 2nd quarter to see a sharp contract, compared to the 1st quarter, causing the country’s GDP growth to stand less than 2 per cent, urging the government to take up urgent measures to prevent a further economic shock in Thailand. Anusorn went on to praise the government’s move to allow private hospitals to buy 10 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to help create herd immunity amid rising numbers of new infections as this is likely to help improve the outbreak situation sooner. However, he warned that the tourism sector may have to be prepared for the possibility of a delay of the reopening plan for foreign visitors if the latest round of the outbreak cannot be contained within May. Thailand’s economic recovery pace could lag behind countries that can better control the outbreak for their ability to inoculate more than 70 per cent of their population, Anusorn said, adding that foreign funds will head to those countries instead. Kasikorn Research Centre (KS) said the new wave of the outbreak has hit hard Thai households’ concerns over their livelihood, citing its Household Economic Condition Index (KR-ECI) in March. KS said the latest wave of the outbreak in April would likely affect household Economic Condition Index (KR-ECI) in the next 3 months after positive expectations towards vaccines caused KR-ECI to recover at a faster rate in March, 2021. The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB) is scheduled for a meeting on April 21 to evaluate the economic impact of the fresh wave of the outbreak after its planned meeting on April 3 was cancelled after a Federation of the Thai Industries (FTI) member reportedly tested positive for Covid-19. The private sector got its wish for the private sector in importing vaccines to help speed up the government’s vaccination pace and build herd immunity. Sanan Angubolkul, chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC), 1 of the 3 committee members, said the meeting’s key agenda is to discuss the government’s move to allow private hospitals to buy 10 million doses of Covid- 19 vaccines, in addition to the government’s purchases as well as reassess the economic impact of the outbreak and come up with new economic relief measures. The TCC assessed that a new surge in Covid-19 infections will cause about 100 billion baht in economic damage. The TCC believed the government may be able to contain the outbreak within 2 months. It is upbeat that the outbreak will not detail the government’s plans to test the reopening plan in 7 areas on July 1. Bangkok Chain Hospital Plc (BCH), Praram 9 Hospital (PR9), Thonburi Healthcare Group (THG) and Ekachai Medical Care (EKH) are ramping up negotiations to import Covid-19 vaccines after the government gave the greenlight for the private sector to procure vaccines. BCH is positive that private hospitals will be able to import vaccines of other producers soon, BCH Chairman and chief executive Chalerm Harnphanich said revealed after a meeting between representatives of the Private Hospital Association (PHA) and Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha over plans for the private sector to seek additional doses of vaccines across all vaccine producers. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) already said private hospitals could procure a total of 10 million Covid-19 vaccine doses, enough to inoculate 5 million people.