The government of Montenegro last week thanked former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra for donating medical masks to help the country fight against the coronavirus outbreak.
Thaksin’s office confirmed that he donated 100,000 masks to Montenegro as a humanitarian gesture.
Thaksin’s office said that the Shinawatra family has also donated over 50 million baht worth of personal protective equipment (PPE) and masks to three Thai hospitals last week, which was reported by local media.
A Facebook post by the Montenegrin government thanked five major donors including Thaksin for helping them in their fight against the disease.
The news of the donations comes at a time when Thailand is experiencing severe shortages in masks and PPE equipment for its healthcare practitioners.
The Prayut government has been unable to keep up with demands from the healthcare sector as the coronavirus outbreak spreads throughout the country.
Health minister Anutin Charnvirakul confirmed to Thai Enquirer that there were indeed shortages but the government was doing its best to source new equipment to protect doctors and nurses.
Thaksin’s children posted on Instagram last week that the family had donated PPE equipment, masks and food to Ramatibodi, Siriraj and Chulalongkorn Hospitals which “had received the most number of coronavirus cases currently.”
Thaksin was made a Montenegrin citizen in 2009 after he was ousted by a military coup in Thailand in 2006.
Thaksin and his sister Yingluck, who was also deposed in a military coup, were given fast-track citizenship by Montenegro after they invested into the country’s hospitality and tourism industry.
