Jamby among those stranded in Thailand
abs-cbnNEWS.com | 12/01/2008 1:56 PM
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No less than Sen. Ana Consuelo "Jamby" Madrigal is among those stranded in Thailand after protesters took over major airports in Bangkok last week.
Philippine Ambassador to Thailand Antonio Rodriguez said Madrigal is just one of hundreds of Filipinos who are set to fly home this week after being stranded in Bangkok.
“[Madrigal] is also waiting for an opportunity to go back to the Philippines because she has to be there by Wednesday,” Rodriguez told ANC.
He said that aside from Madrigal, at least 31 local officials of Lanao del Norte were also stranded in Bangkok including Rep. Abdullah Dimaporo and former governor Imelda Dimaporo. He said Dimaporo's group went to Bangkok for a business trip.
Rodriguez said 10 buses loaded with 427 stranded Filipinos are now on its way to Chiang Mai where they are scheduled to board a Philippine Airlines flight back to Manila. He said another 138 Filipinos had to be turned away and advised to take the second flight back to Manila on Tuesday.
He said an estimated 300 Filipinos are awaiting repatriation to the Philippines. “I think some of them are still somewhere in Thailand, enjoying the place. That's why it is very difficult for us to give an accurate number of Filipinos who are still in Bangkok. Thailand is such a big place and it’s so easy to go to so many places,” he said.
The ambassador accompanied the Filipinos to Chiang Mai to see them off and will be heading back to Bangkok on the same bus.
It can be recalled that the Thai government has provided 2,000 baht per day, per stranded passenger for their hotel accommodation and meals.
“So far I haven’t heard anybody complain about the insufficiency of the amount provided by the Thai government,” he said.
Thais also going home
The PAL special flight to Chiang Mai scheduled at 2:30 p.m. Monday will include seventy passengers composed of Thai nationals and tourists.
The passengers were stranded in the country after flights to and from Bangkok airport were cancelled due to political unrest in Thailand. In spite of the problems currently faced by their country, the Thais were looking forward to returning home.
The Thai nationals and tourists thanked the Filipino community and the government for assisting them during their extended stay in the country. The Thai embassy in the Philippines said it is still looking for other stranded Thai nationals in the country.
In a related development, the Department of Foreign Affairs said the summit on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will push through this month in Thailand.
“As a matter of fact, the summit venue has been moved from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and its going to take place beginning December 13 up to December 18,” DFA Spokesman Claro Cristobal said.
The venue has been changed due to the raging protests in Bangkok, Dateline Philippines reported.
“We haven’t got any advice from the host government about any postponement of the summit and we wish our brother Thais well and we hope that their hosting of the 14th ASEAN summit will be successful,” said Cristobal.
