Pormet said the issue is sensitive and involves certain figures and so needs to be treated carefully and thoroughly.

The TJA received the findings from the independent fact-finding panel appointed by the TJA in mid December. Due to the long New Year holiday the TJA could not hold an immediate meeting to review the reports.

Jade Donavanik, a noted legal expert and panel member, said the panel has completed its probe and produced two reports. One is a full report, while the other is a summary for public release. The TJA will decide to what extent the issue will be disclosed or what measures introduced to deal with the issue, Jade said.

The TJA in September resolved to set up the fact-finding panel comprising experts from various fields to probe allegations that a media executive sexually harassed one of his employees, forcing her to quit her job. The TJA chose that approach as reflective of the body’s efforts to promote self-regulation.

Like many streets in the Thai capital, the thoroughfare is festooned with electrical and telecom cables, a black web that hangs menacingly overhead like dystopian Christmas decorations.

But Bangkok authorities are now untangling the cables and moving them underground as part of an urban renewal pushed by the Thai junta that seized power in 2014.

The aim is to make Bangkok not only safer, but easier on the eyes and less prone to blackouts.

Frayed cables — often live — dangle at head-height onto Bangkok’s streets, making safe navigation of the already treacherous pavements even harder. Other wires are left to bunch up near pylons, creeping hazardously across the narrow walkways of the city centre.

Exposure to the elements has also meant the cables are easily damanged, which can cause problem’s for the city’s electrical system.

Wireless Road, which got its name from hosting one of Thailand’s first radio transmitting stations, is among dozens of streets targeted in the early phase of the de-cluttering campaign.

Large stretches of Sukhumvit Road, a central artery that cuts through high-end neighbourhoods and tourist hotspots, have already been cleared since November.

“This is a commercial road. We see hotels and foreigners living around here. When they see the beautiful road, they will spread the word,” Prasonk Kumpradit, an official with Bangkok’s Metropolitan Electricity Authority, told AFP.

The project has been planned for years, but many suspect it received an unexpected jolt after Microsoft founder Bill Gates visited Bangkok in 2016 and took a disapproving photo of one street’s wiry web.

The billionaire later deleted the Facebook post, which blamed the cluster of wires on people illegally tapping into the grid.

Netizens quibbled with his diagnosis of the cable bunches, which include both telecom connections and power supply wires, but less than a week later the government announced that cleanup was moving forward.

‘No more disorderly stuff’

So far 1,184 utility poles have been removed from three of the city’s biggest roads.

Over the next five years authorities plan to strip cables from 39 more streets totalling 127 kilometres, reinstalling the new connections under the road.

While there are no hard figures, Bangkok authorities say that is just a fraction of the city’s cables but is still a mjor improvement on the status quo.

“The main advantage we get is the security of the electrical system,” said Prasonk.

“When the cables are underground, the problem with disturbances that can cause blackouts will be gone.”

Thailand’s military rulers have launched a flurry of campaigns to impose some order on their chaotic capital in recent years, including clearing away many of Bangkok’s famous street-food stalls.

But while that decision caused dismay in some quarters, few will shed a tear when the cable clusters disappear.

“Taking the wires away is really great. It makes the city clean, clear and pleasant to look at,” Sukanya Phuangdech, a 45-year-old Bangkokian, told AFP from a newly-cleared Sukhumvit Road.

“No more disorderly stuff. I feel like people are happier.”

Martin Fletcher, a 30-year-old teacher from England, agreed.

“Bangkok’s very famous for having all the electrical wires — and it’s a bit like spaghetti, and they’ve been cleared… it’s a lot nicer now,” he said.

The announcement was made after questions emerged about the hospital’s practices when pictures were posted online showing signs inside the hospital warning of electricity charges of Bt30 a day.

The signs were posted only to deter “inappropriate power charging”, the hospital stated.

The signs showed cell phones and a rice cooker plugged into the hospital’s electrical sockets.

“This is a state hospital and no one wants to come to the hospital for charging [their devices],” the sign stated.

When asked about the pictures, hospital director Dr Chokechai Manadee said on Wednesday that nurses had posted the signs to tell people not to use electricity by charging cell phones.

“That increases the risk of short circuits. Such cases have caused power failure several times already,” he said.

Decorations and paintings adorning the key crematorium buildings will first be relocated to the Office of Traditional Arts in Nakhon Pathom province, said Anan Chuchote, director of the Fine Arts Department.

Other features will be relocated to a new museum in Pathum Thani province with the intention that younger people can learn about Thai culture as represented by the monarchy by viewing the works.

The removal will be finished in the middle of March, Anan said.

A COMMITTEE tasked with setting the country’s minimum wages has postponed its decision to January 17 after failing to reach agreement on the proposed hike.

Meanwhile, a national workers’ rights group is insisting that the pay rate be raised to Bt360 per day nationwide. The current daily minimum wage nationwide is Bt310

It was earlier reported that the minimum wage hike would range from Bt2 to Bt15 per day depending on geographical areas.

Jarin Chakkapak, the permanent secretary of the Labour Ministry who chairs the tripartite minimum wage committee, said wage hikes proposed by each of the provinces varied widely, so there was no consensus on an appropriate minimum wage.

He said the committee would meet again next Wednesday and there would definitely be a raise in the minimum wage this year.

The nationwide wage was raised from Bt300 to Bt310 last year following a three-year break from 2014-2016.

The new wage levels have to be acceptable to both employers and employees, he said, declining to comment on the reports of a Bt2 to Bt15 per day increase depending on the geographic area.

The cost of living, inflation rate, production costs, productivity and GDP growth were among the factors used in calculating the new minimum wage, he said. In addition, the committee would take into account wages in neighbouring countries.

According to Jarin, minimum wages should be based on provincial economic indicators such as GDP as well as labour demand in each of the provinces.

He said some provinces, such as Bueng Kan, had proposed a high wage rise due to their relatively small population, so there was a significant discrepancy in the proposed minimum wage at this stage.

Charlie Loisoong, the Thai Labour Solidarity Committee’s deputy chairman, said there was an intense debate yesterday over the exact rate of the new minimum wage.

“I was assured that there would be a minimum wage raise, but the increase would not be uniform countrywide,” Charlie said.

“We don’t know how much the government will increase the minimum wage in each province, but we insist that if there is only a small raise, it cannot improve the workers’ financial condition.”

He emphasised that the workers’ rights groups still insisted that the minimum wage be increased to Bt360 nationwide for each individual worker and to a higher rate for workers who have family members, in order to meet the higher cost of living and inflation rate.

“There is still ongoing debate over how much the minimum wage should rise and we will carry on our campaign to have sufficient wages for every worker and their family members,” he said.

He also urged Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to exercise his authority under Article 44 of the charter to settle the wage dispute if there was no consensus.

Charlie also proposed that provincial minimum wage committees should be abolished and that academic institutes such as the Thailand Development Research Institute should be commissioned to undertake a detailed study on |appropriate minimum wages in Thailand.

In the face of an unseasonal rainstorm, many districts of the capital were swamped. In Bang Na, motorists said they saw several vehicles broken down on heavily-flooded roads and it took them significantly longer than usual to travel from their homes to work.

“I spent two times longer than usual on roads,” a bank employee said.

Another company worker said she faced the worst of the situation as her commuting time in the morning increased threefold.

“Usually, it takes me less than one hour to come to the office. Today, it took me three hours and I ended up missing a meeting,” she said.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, she said she faced drizzle and occasional flooding all the way from her home to the office.

The flood prevention centre of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administra-tion (BMA) reported at 6.45am that several Bangkok roads were inundated. Among the flooded routes were Pattanakarn Road, Lad Prao Road, Srinakharin Road, Suwintha-wong Road, Ramkhamhaeng Road and Sukhumvit Road. Floodwaters were up to 30 centimetres high

According to the BMA, accumulated rainfall in the 24-hour period ending at 7am yesterday soared above 90 millimetres in many parts of Bangkok.

At a rainfall monitoring station in Nong Chok district, the accumulated rainfall reached 119.5 millimetres. In Bang Na district, it was 99 millimetres and, in Min Buri, 96 millimetres.

The capital usually can handle up to 60 millimetres of rainfall in an hour. If rainfall is higher than that, it will take time for local authorities to drain all the rainwater away.

The BMA said heavy rain started in the capital at about 5am. As the morning rush hour started, commuters were caught in severe traffic congestion.

Social media platforms were flooded with posts complaining about Bangkok’s nightmarish traffic.

The BMA admitted yesterday that some water pumps were undergoing maintenance and a flood-drainage system was not yet completed – reasons why it took longer than usual to drain all the floodwater.

To ease flood woes, troops were deployed to direct traffic in areas of major flooding and heavy traffic congestion.

At the Nimitmai Intersection in Min Buri district, the water was about 20 centimetres high and troops from the Ninth Infantry Division were dispatched to direct traffic. Troops were dispatched from the First Army Division’s First Infantry Battalion to help motorists at On Soi Phaholyothin 8 in Phayathai district, which was also flooded.

At the Yen Arkat intersection on Soi Nonsee 14, troops from the First Infantry Battalion of the First Army Division were on standby to help motorists. The roads were covered by 5 to 10 centimetres of water. Another unit of troops was sent to direct traffic and on Boriphat Road in front of the King Rama VII Museum.

Traffic slowed down because of flooding and also due to cars that broke down along the way and blocked traffic.

The situation improved drastically in the afternoon.

Narong Ruangsri, who heads the BMA Drainage and Sewerage Department, assured motorists late yesterday that all main roads were now flood-free.

“We urgently solved the flood problems,” he said, adding that his team was focused on clearing floodwater from secondary routes. “We will work fast,” he said.

Meanwhile, Thai Bankers’ Association chairman Predee Daochai revealed a plan to implement in the middle of this year a “Nation Digital ID” system for stricter confirmation of the identities of those applying to open bank accounts. The system’s “E-Identity” system was more effective than the Interior Ministry’s smart card reader, as it was integrated with various checks by banks, he said.

Private company worker Nicha, who was detained for three days over a fraud charge before being released on Bt80,000 bail on Monday, claimed she had applied for a new ID card after her wallet went missing in early October, but the culprit was still able to use the old card to open accounts.

Nicha filed a complaint at the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) on Tuesday. The CSD then requested that Tak’s Ban Tak Police Station transfer into its jurisdiction a fraud case in which a female victim was duped by a foreign man on Facebook.

The man allegedly had the victim wire a total of Bt1.3 million to three bank accounts. One account, which received about Bt300,000, was under Nicha’s name. The complaint led to Nicha’s arrest and court-ordered detention.

A bank executive, who asked for anonymity, claimed that bank staff could not force a customer to remove a medical mask that covered their nose and mouth.

But the executive said that Nicha shouldn’t have been detained because she had filed a police report after her wallet went missing. Apparently, police did not submit certain key evidence to the court, so the court proceeded on the available information, the executive said.

“Banks are not 100 per cent at fault in [Nicha’s ordeal],” the executive said. “Police should also take the responsibility.”

Meanwhile, national police deputy chief Pol General Weerachai Songmetta joined a video conference at Bangkok’s Royal Thai Police head office in the afternoon along with CSD officers and Ban Tak police.

Earlier, CSD chief Pol Maj-General Maitree Chimcherd said police had asked the seven banks for security camera footage for clues about the suspect who had misused Nicha’s ID card.

After the meeting, Weerachai said Ban Tak police would investigate the fraud in Tak, while the CSD would cover the matter in other provinces, because the fraud involved bank accounts in two other names besides Nicha’s.

Accounts opened in the names of Kwan Thongnoi and Teerapat Ngamwong received Bt400,000 and Bt630,000 respectively of the Tak victim’s money.

Police have urged the two men to step forward to express their innocence.

“The police’s procedure against Nicha was in line with the legal steps,” Weerachai said. “Her arrest warrant was issued because she didn’t respond to the two previous summonses in a two-month span. Now we will probe if she was a victim or an accomplice.”

Provincial Police Region 6 chief Pol Lt-General Thawitchart Palasak said at a separate press conference that Ban Tak police performed the due steps in issuing two summonses via a Nonthaburi precinct, which got no response, and a January 3 arrest warrant because Nicha’s name was on the bank account used in the crime.

This fraud offence brought against Nicha was punishable by up to three years in jail.

Thawitchart said Nicha was brought into CSD custody on Friday and sent to Ban Tak police on the same night, but she did not have the Bt80,000 required for police bail. The next morning they sent her to court for a detention order and her bail application was denied – resulting in a total of three days in detention.

Thawitchart said police did not have a chance to get details of the stolen ID card claim because Nicha had failed to respond to the summonses. He said he told investigators to revoke the arrest warrant and withdraw the charge if the probe deems Nicha is a victim.

At the forum on human rights violations by the media – held by Amnesty International Thailand in Bangkok – a plea was made to journalists to have more respect for the rights of their sources.

Participants were told that producing news only to get a larger audience harms the rights of sources and does not improve society.

Sangkama Sarawat, professor at the Information Communication Technology Faculty Silpakorn University, said that the current trend and common strategy of Thai media is to sell everything that appeals to the public, regardless of the newsworthiness and impact on sources.

“There are many examples of the irresponsible news reporting, such as repeating the wrong social norms or violating the privacy and confidentiality of news sources, which cast a negative impact on both news sources and society. But many media organisations still continue this wrongdoing for the sake of news popularity,” Sangkama said.

“The media have the power to set the agenda for society, so they should carefully select the stories to be published, as journalists have a duty to be investigative and question public interest issues.”

She suggested that the media should focus more on being a proper social watchdog and work on comprehensive and unprejudiced news reports to push for social improvement. She added that journalists also have to be careful and respect the sensitivity and confidentiality of news sources, as a report can drastically damage their reputation and cast a negative impact on their life.

Ticha na Nakorn, the director of Baan Kanjanapisek Juvenile Vocational Training Centre, said that a shallow news report leaves a stigma on sources and does not improve society. Ticha used as an example the case of “Moo Yong”, the teenager who drove his car into a crowd of people several years ago. She said he was one of the victims of rights violation by the media, because the media portrayed blamed him without digging deeper into the motive and driving force that made him commit his crime.

“The media only portrayed his dark side without bothering to investigate the reasons why he committed the crime and the public remembered him as criminal, who cannot return to be a good person,” she said.

“Actually, when I talked to him, he showed me his bright side, that he felt guilty about his crime and wanted to be ordained as monk to do a good deed for the persons that he killed. Moreover, if we look into his family and childhood, we can see that his behaviour was a product of violence in his family.”

Ticha said journalists should have wider vision to investigate the problem at its root and question the system in order to alert the public about the real problem and push authorities to improve their systems and policies.

“Journalists have to look deeper at the issues and have to refrain from blaming the individual for their bad behaviour. Instead they should question what kind of system and society makes them commit crime and try to push forward for improvement by reporting quality news,” she said.

“Substandard retainers and rubber bands may cause wounds and inflammation. Users risk taking heavy metals like cadmium and lead into their body,” the council’s president, Paisal Kangwongkijm, said yesterday.

He said the accumulation of metal and chemicals could harm the liver and, in the long term, cause cancer.

“There are cases of fashion-themed, unauthorised orthodontics services causing deaths too,” he said.

Paisal was speaking at a press conference after authorities found 308 shops providing orthodontic services without a licence or offering substandard orthodontic supplies during the past 10 months.

Some operators have advertised their products and services online.

“Online services and products are illegal. Orthodontic services must be provided by dentists specialising in the field,” Paisal said.

He added that people offering dental services or products online had violated the law. Offenders, he said, were liable to five years in jail and/or a maximum fine of Bt500,000.

Meanwhile, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) deputy secretary-general Somchai Preechathaveekid said his agency would consider taking action against a controversial laboratory in Ratchaburi province. “Its licence may be suspended or revoked,” he said.

The lab was caught up in a scandal after a famous singer advertised its online retainer service in a social-media post last April. Its sales reportedly soared by more than Bt10 million.

Thongchai Vachirarojpisan, a dentist working in the consumer-protection field, said provincial public-health offices had been instructed to investigate suppliers or operators that offered unauthorised orthodontic products and services.

“We have found such suppliers and operators in 19 provinces already. The provincial public-health offices will work with police in bringing the culprits to justice,” he said.

Kampanart’s mother left him when he was three, leaving Rungroj, 62, alone with their only child. Rungroj provides a tuktuk service in downtown Hat Yai, but he earns only Bt100200 a day, a sum that has to be divided up for daily expenses as well as education fees for Kampanart. That leaves them with no choice but to use the tuktuk for shelter.

Daily life for the Tipparats starts with the son having to wake up early to act as an assistant to monks from Mahattamangkalaram Temple in their morning alms walk. After the round, the monks share their food with the boy and sometimes give him money. When the boy goes to school, his father drives the vehicle around to find passengers.

Rungroj picks Kampanart up at school at around 45pm and then makes another round in the evening to find potential passengers. They earn extra money from Wednesday to Sunday when there is a night market and vendors hire him to transport their goods. But the work finishes late at night, meaning Kampanart has little time to do his homework and rest.

“My son and I have taken shelter in my rented tuktuk for about four months, because I cannot afford to rent a room. I can earn about Bt300 a day from driving the tuktuk but have to pay Bt120 to rent it. Sometimes I have to spend all the leftover money to fix the vehicle,” Rungroj said.

The father said he was sorry that his son had to live in the tuktuk and had no opportunity to play like other children. “Sometimes, my son is disappointed as I have no money to buy him new clothes or toys. However, I will fight with all my best efforts so that he can continue his studies,” he said.

Rungroj said the thing he most wanted now was a proper roof over their heads.

Although Kampanart said he felt troubled that he had to live in a tuktuk, he will try to endure.

“I wish I could become a policeman. What I want for the National Children’s Day is a bicycle and a Superman costume. I will study hard so that I can take care of my father,” the boy said.

A Malaysian monk at Mahattamangkalaram Temple said Kampanart helped the monks almost every day before he went to school in exchange for food. “He is a good boy,” the monk said.

Anyone who wants to help the father and son can donate to Rungroj’s Krung Thai Bank account of 9300348094; call him on 080 902 6285, or contact a charity coordinator on 089 462 4912 or 089 733 8868.