LTO head Alberto Suansing stranded in Thailand

Among the many trapped in Thailand since the demonstrators blocked two of its international airports in Don Mueang and Swarnabhumi this week is a ranking Philippine official, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) head Alberto Suansing who was supposed to return home Thursday, and but could not do so because of the situation. Suansing had gone to Bangkok to attend a meeting in drawing up standards for motor vehicles along with representatives of motor vehicle makers in the Philippines.

“Marami kaming Pilipinong ganyan ang situation. Ang iba pumunta ng Phuket, then from Phuket mag-e-eroplano papunta Singapore. Okay naman kami rito walang dapat alalahanin ang kababayan natin diyan, ito nga lang kaunting gastos kasi naka-standby kami sa hotel (There are many of us Filipinos stranded in Thailand. Some went to Phuket where they would take a flight to Singapore. We’re okay here but we have to incur expenses because we’ve been holed up in our hotel),” Suansing said in an interview on dzBB radio.

Suansing said he is considering some options, including taking a bus from Chiang Mai to Laos, where he would take a flight to Saigon in Vietnam and then take a flight to Manila.

“Pauwi na sana ako kahapon eh hindi nangyari kasi nagsara ang airport ng Bangkok (I was supposed to be home Thursday but the airports were closed),” he said.

Foreign Affairs Department spokesman Claro Cristobal said at least 80 Filipinos from the Middle East using Bangkok as a transit point were also stranded there.