BANGKOK – Former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Friday vowed to fight against an administrative order that instructed her to pay for massive losses incurred in the rice-pledging scheme.

She said the government’s order for her to pay Bt35.7 billion (S$1.4 billion) compensation was unfair.

Her remark came after she received an administrative order signed by Deputy Thai Finance Minister Wusudhi Srisuphan on Thursday, instructing her to pay the compensation to the ministry within 30 days.

If she refuses to pay, she can file a petition against the order with the Administrative Court within 90 days after acknowledging the order.

MANILA – Agents of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested a Japanese fugitive wanted by authorities in Tokyo for involvement in a multimillion-dollar electronic fraud scam.

Keiji Yuasa, 63 was arrested in Binangonan town in the province of Rizal by members of the BI’s fugitive search unit (FSU). He is currently detained at the BI Detention Center in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City while awaiting deportation.

Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said Yuasa’s passport was already cancelled by the Japanese government in November last year and that he was declared undesirable by the BI for posing a risk to public safety and security.

“A team of Japanese policemen will be in Manila to fetch and escort him (Yuasa) to Tokyo where he will stand trial for his crimes,” Morente said, adding that the alien was included on the BI blacklist to prevent him from re-entering the Philippines.

Yuasa fled to the Philippines after a Japanese court issued an arrest warrant for allegedly embezzling 400 million yen (S$5.3 million) or more than $3.8 million in an electronic scam which he committed while working for a Japanese bank.

China has surpassed the United States to become the world’s largest iOS app market in the third quarter, according to a report released on Thursday by App Annie, a US-based mobile analytics company.

The company said that with 75 per cent of revenue from games, China’s iOS revenue exceeded US$1.7 billion (S$2.37 billion) in the latest quarter, leading the US by more than 15 per cent.

Haim Mendelson, professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, said that the Chinese mobile internet was moving ahead of the US and there would be more of the mobile innovations taking place in China.

“Because of the size of the Chinese market, the increasing number of people in the middle class who can afford an iPhone, and the increasing penetration and use of the mobile internet in China, there is already more money to be made on apps in China compared to the US.

“This implies that investments in innovation will be increasingly targeted on the Chinese market, and coupled with the increase in innovative capacity in China.”

Dai Bin, region director of Greater China at App Annie, said: “China earning the No 1 place in the iOS market by revenue is a huge milestone for the app ecosystem. As an app publisher or marketer, if China wasn’t a key priority in your app strategy, it should be now.”

Dai added that in terms of absolute revenue growth, games are followed by entertainment apps, with video streaming apps such as iQIYI, Tencent Video and Youku.

The report also shows that in China, the top grossing categories outside of games on iOS in the latest quarter involve entertainment, social networking books, photo and video, all of which have more than tripled in revenue year-on-year.

Another mobile market monitor Newzoo noted that by 2020, the global app market will increase to US$80.6 billion, while the proportion of revenue in the games category will decline to 72 per cent.

According to Newzoo, as the growth of revenue of games slowed, the non-games app will enter into a new stage of rapid development.

“There is a trend of content consumption. Before, the majority of internet users preferred to pay for real items. However, with an increase in average incomes, now more Chinese will pay for content consumption, such as watching online videos,” said Xue Yongfeng, an analyst at Beijing-based internet consultancy Analysys.

China’s iOS app revenue growth is set to continue, with the largest absolute revenue growth than any country by 2020, according to App Annie.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has expressed appreciation and thanks to all foreign countries that have expressed condolences after HM the King’s death.

Many countries joined the mourning in various ways such as sending messages of condolence, flying flags at half-mast and hosting exhibitions about the monarch.

“The prime minister wishes to thank the allies who sent their condolences to pay respects and mourned the King’s passing. The Foreign Ministry will officially thank them later,” Government Spokesman Lt-General Sansern Kaewkamnerd said yesterday.

“This clearly reflects the greatness of the King, as he is praised and honoured by the international community. This also demonstrates the good relationship that foreign countries have with Thailand,” he said.

Sansern quoted the premier as being appreciative of the loyalty and respect shown by Thais living abroad who joined in mourning activities, initiated either by themselves or by Thai embassies where they live.

He wished to give moral support to Thais in foreign countries, so they have strong spirit to continue their work with best efforts and be strong with one another in order to go through this tragic period together, Sansern said.

Meanwhile, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife paid respects to HM the King at the Grand Palace. He signed the condolence book before laying a wreath in front of the royal urn.

Lee first leader to visit Bangkok

The Straits Times reported that Lee is the first ASEAN leader to travel personally to the Thai capital to pay his respects since the monarch passed away on October 13 at the age of 89.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Lee said: “His Majesty had a long and benevolent reign. He was a great leader who shaped Thailand’s development and improved his people’s lives. He will also be remembered for fostering the enduring friendship between Thailand and Singapore. May he rest in peace.”

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PM Lee pays last respects to late Thai King in Bangkok

Source:

Reuters

AFP

The Straits Times

The New Paper

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Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen are also expected to arrive in coming days.

The Straits Times said King Bhumibol was regarded as a unifying figure through decades of political turbulence.

On October 13, PM Lee wrote a post on Facebook recalling his meeting with His Majesty at an ASEAN Summit in 2009 in Hua Hin.

“He was a most gracious host and took a close interest in ASEAN programmes to promote economic growth and development,” Lee wrote.

He said “his wise leadership and enormous prestige held the country together”.

The Foreign Ministry said that Najib, the Malaysian prime minister, is scheduled to express condolences at the Grand Palace today, followed by Cambodian premier Hun Sen.

Malaysia’s King, Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah, is due to arrive next Friday.

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A look back at Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s life

Source:

Reuters

AFP

The Straits Times

The Nation/ANN

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DAVAO, Philippines – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Saturday he would not sever his nation’s alliance with the United States, as he clarified his announcement that he planned to “separate“.

“It’s not severance of ties. Severance is to cut diplomatic relations. I can not do that. Why? It’s in the best interests of my country that I don’t do that,” Duterte told reporters in his hometown of Davao after returning from China.

The firebrand leader signalled on Thursday during his four-day state visit to Beijing that he intended to end the Philippines’ 70-year alliance with the United States in favour of China and Russia.

“I announce my separation from the United States,” Duterte told a group of Chinese businessmen.

“America has lost. I’ve realigned myself in your ideological flow and maybe I will also go to Russia to talk to (President Vladimir) Putin and tell him that there are three of us against the world: China, Philippines and Russia. It’s the only way.”

Until Duterte took office on June 30, the Philippines had been one of the United States’ most important and loyal allies in Asia, and a key to President Barack Obama’s “pivot” to the region.

But since becoming president Duterte has done a dramatic foreign policy U-turn that has baffled US leaders.

US State Department spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday that the United States would seek clarification from the Philippines about the “separation” remark.

“It’s not clear to us exactly what that means in all its ramifications,” he said.

Kirby also indicated Asian governments were growing increasingly nervous about Duterte, who has been fiercely criticised in the West for a war on crime in which thousands of people have been killed.

“It isn’t just the United States who is baffled by this rhetoric. We have heard from many of our friends and partners in the region who are likewise confused about where this is going,” he said.

Duterte on Saturday gave a series of comments to clarify those remarks.

“Sever is to cut. Separate is just to chart another way of doing,” he said.

“What I’m really saying was separation of foreign policy, which in the past and until I became president, we always followed what the United States would give the cue.”

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Duterte in China to promote economic ties

Source:

Reuters

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Nevertheless, Duterte launched another tirade against the United States for criticising his war on crime, which has left more than 3,600 people dead and raised fears about extrajudicial killings.

Duterte said a defence pact signed in 2014, which allows for a much greater US military presence in the Philippines, remained in jeopardy.

And he said he would never visit the United States.

“Not in this lifetime,” he said about travelling to the United States, as he heaped praise on Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as celebrating billions of dollars of Chinese deals secured while in Beijing.