VP BINAY OFF TO SAUDI AS PNOY’S REP TO FUNERAL OF PRINCE

Vice President Jejomar C. Binay today left for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to officially extend the country’s condolences to the bereaved family of the late Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdel Azziz al Saud.

He went as President Benigno S. Aquino III’s representative.

“The Crown Prince was a man of vision and many achievements. But for us, he was a true friend of the Philippines and Filipinos,” Binay said in a statement.

“We would like to assure His Majesty, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, the Royal Family and the people of Saudi Arabia that the government and the people of the Philippines stand with them at this hour of their great loss,” he added.

The Crown Prince, who was the kingdom’s deputy prime minister, passed away of an unspecified illness on October 22 at a hospital in New York. He was 85 years old.

Binay left early morning today at 1 a.m. onboard Etihad Airways flight EY 421.