Sudan map. INQUIRER STOCK PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Around 200 Filipinos evacuating violence-stricken Sudan were held “hostage” en route to the border of Egypt as the bus they were on stopped “in the middle of the desert” and they were asked to pay an additional $10,000 fee.
In a radio interview, two overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were part of the group narrated that they left Khartoum around 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday (Sudan time) to go to Aswan.
“Kanina po around 6:30 a.m. Sudan time, umalis po kami ng Khartoum papunta po rito [sa] boundary ng Egypt… Originally, sa Aswan kami pupunta. Ang nangyari po, sa haba ng aming biyahe, hinostage pa kami nang aming bus na nasakyan. Tinigil kami somewhere sa gitna ng desyerto at humihingi sa amin ng karagdagang 10,000USD,” said Manolo Bienviaje during an interview with DZBB on Thursday.
(Earlier at around 6:30 a.m. Sudan time, we left Khartoum on our way here [to] the border of Egypt… We were originally set for Aswan. What happened was, for the length of our trip, the bus we were on held us hostage. It stopped in the middle of the desert and asked us to pay an additional fee of $10,000.)
READ: Palace says 50 more Filipinos moved out of Sudan to Egypt
According to Bienviaje, Filipinos leaving Sudan booked a total of four buses, and each bus should carry 49 Filipinos. He said all four buses stopped the trip along the way to Aswan and demanded an extra fee of $5,000 for each bus in order to continue their travel.
Bienviaje and fellow OFW Jon Emil Deza said they were not able to pay the additional charge for their bus.
“Hindi po namin alam. Ang usapan po sa bus, sa kontrata po, itatawid po kami ng Aswan. Ngayon binaba po kami rito sa Argeen,” said Bienviaje when asked why the buses discontinued the trip.
(We don’t know. The deal with the bus, based on the contract, we should be brought to Aswan. Now, we were told to disembark here in Argeen.)
“’Yung ibang bus po ng Pilipino ay itatawid po talaga sila. Pero kami pong apat na bus, binaba,” he added.
(Other buses with Filipinos will be brought across. But us on the four buses, we were told to get off.)
READ: ‘Out or on the move’: About 420 Filipinos headed out of war-torn Sudan
Based on the details shared by Bienviaje and Deza, their bus left Elnefeidi Compound in Sudan’s capital Khartoum at around 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday (Sudan time). Their trip, however, ended at Argeen at around 11:00 p.m. and were left to wait there. They said they have since been waiting at Argeen for further instructions.
The DZBB interview was held at around 4:00 a.m. on Thursday (Sudan time).
Bienviaje said they will continue waiting at Argeen until 2:00 p.m. when the processing of their exit visas is expected to commence.
INQUIRER.net has reached out to the Department of Foreign Affairs for comments on this matter and for other details related to the evacuation of Filipinos in Sudan but has not received a response as of writing.
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