OPINION

CCSA is dreaming

I'm deeply concerned with the road map presented by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation and Administration (CCSA), which lists as a goal "being able to achieve herd immunity with 45% of the population vaccinated".

This percentage is far below the level that most credible scientists believe is needed to achieve herd immunity.

While the World Health Organization advises it is too early to know exactly what proportion of a population must be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity, it points to vaccination rates of 95% needed to attain immunity from measles and 80% for polio as likely scenarios.

Most scientists who have dared to speculate on the percentage of immunisation required to achieve herd immunity from Covid-19 put the figure at 60% to 70% at least. Nowhere have I seen any estimates anywhere near as low as the 45% called for in the CCSA's road map.

If the CCSA has sound data to support its optimistically low target for herd immunity, please share it transparently. If no such data exist, the CCSA would be well-advised to bring its road map into alignment with leading global scientific thinking.

Lucrative nonsense

Re: "Leave logic to monkeys", (PostBag, March 21).

In January, I too naively believed that spending seven hours of my life at Chaeng Wattana -- sitting before an Immigration officer, having my photo taken and providing all my address details needed for a visa extension -- was proof enough that I was still residing in Thailand at the same address. However, when I tried in good faith to report again 90 days later, I was informed that I had been delinquent (for non-reporting) and was obliged to pay a 2,000 baht fine.

It was explained to me that no one in the Immigration Bureau had ever even remotely considered linking these two (visa extension and reporting) databases; and the visa extension people wouldn't dream of notifying their "90-day reporting" colleagues of the presence of a farang guest sitting a stone's throw away. They went on to admit that it wasn't in their interest ever to do so, since it could negatively impact a very lucrative revenue stream that has become even more important during Covid lockdown.

To its credit the IB, recognising the bad optics of its obviously inefficient, time-wasting procedure, completely relocated the 90-reporting function to the Muang Thong Thani site, thus eliminating the most visible stupidity while generating some extra income for the hard-hit taxi industry as well as local manufacturers of plastic chairs.

Chaeng Wattana

Brain drain

Why are the drainage roadside covers in Thailand square or rectangular whereas on western roads round sewer manhole covers are normally used for practical and safety reasons ?

As round manhole covers cannot fall into themselves, should they also be the norm on Thai roads?

Route to the top

Re: "Don't shoot down a child's dream", (Guru, March 19) and "Poor 'guidance'", (PostBag, March 22).

I wonder what would be a response from the teacher if a student said he wanted to go to the Royal Thai Army Academy so he could one day become Thailand's prime minister.

Out of 29 Thailand prime ministers, 14 were in the armed forces (12 in the army, two navy).

So the odds are pretty good.