Several administrative mistakes by the Thai government has public health officials on the lookout for possible signs of coronavirus in the general public despite there being no COVID cases outside of state quarantine in the previous two months.
According to government officials, an Egyptian defense official had travelled through Thailand on July 8 en route to a defense summit in Chengdu China on July 9. The Egyptian official made the day trip to China before returning to Thailand to stay at a local hotel.
He left the country on July 10 and later tested positive.
Many Thais were exposed to the Egyptian during his trip including 30 others on the same flight and unspecified number in the hotel, according to government spokesman Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin.
The government’s public relations department told Thai Enquirer on Monday that there was no protocol breached despite the risk to the public as the Egyptian official was travelling on government business and is allowed to enter without going through state quarantine under the Prayut administration’s guidelines.
Dr Taweesin told the public in a press conference on Monday that those in Rayong suspected of having contracted the virus to contact the Department of Disease Control.
Pakistani Businessmen
The government said on Monday that an administrative error led to the entry of eight Pakistani businesspeople without proper papers.
Dr Taweesin said that the error was on the Thai side and that all eight people had entered the country legally and not illegally like previously reported.
They will now enter the mandatory 14 days state quarantine while the government improves its coordination between its foreign embassies and immigration officials.
Migrant workers
According to the government, between 3,000-4,000 migrant workers have attempted to enter the country illegally from neighboring countries since June.
Many have been apprehended and repatriated. Those that have made their ways to the cities have been apprehended by authorities, according to the government.
It is unconfirmed if the government managed to capture all who have entered the country illegally.
Thailand is host to hundreds of thousands of migrant workers from neighboring Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia who take jobs in the various informal sectors.
Analysts worry that the COVID-19 situation in both Myanmar and Cambodia is a lot worse than official accounts. According to both the Cambodian and Myanmar government, the coronavirus numbers are quite low.
