Thais more creative than Pinoys in ousting their leader - Villar

DAVAO CITY – Former Senate president Manuel Villar Jr. admired the “creativity” of Thais in seizing two airports to demand the ouster of Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat.

Speaking upon arriving in Davao City Thursday night, Villar said what the Thais have done would have serious repercussions on their nation’s economy.

“It means that the Thais are more creative,” he said.

However, Villar said it would not be good for the Philippines if Filipinos resort to the same action to demand that President Arroyo step down.

“It should be through peaceful means and should not affect the country’s economy,” he said.

The country can still achieve the needed change and reforms peacefully, not through extra-constitutional means, he added.

Villar also urged government to ensure the safety of Filipinos stranded in Bangkok as a result of the protest actions in the Thai capital.

“We have to ensure the safety of our Filipinos in Thailand and even those who were reported caught in the incident in Mumbai, India,” he said.

“We have to bring them home safely.”

Villar was in Davao City to receive the Hall of Fame award given to outstanding members of the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants during its 63rd national convention on Thursday.

Meanwhile, a former lawmaker and her husband and daughter are among thousands of Filipinos stranded in Bangkok since Tuesday.

Former Bacolod lawmaker Edith Villanueva, her husband, Jose Ma. Villanueva, president of First Farmers Holding Corp., and their daughter arrived in Bangkok on Nov. 25 to attend an international conference on sugar and ethanol at the Grand Sheraton Hotel.

Mrs. Villanueva, also the president of the Sugar Industry Foundation Inc., said protesters occupied Suvarnabhumi International Airport a few hours after they arrived Tuesday afternoon. – Edith Regalado, Antonieta Lopez