Individuals, groups offer to help stranded expatPublished: Saturday, 19 July, 2008, 12:22 AM Doha Time
By Ramesh Mathew
A NUMBER of people and organisations have come forward to help P Aboo, an Indian expatriate who has spent the past seven years trying to pay back QR200,000 in rent arrears, after his plight was published in Gulf Times yesterday.
Reacting to the report, many members of the Indian community expressed a desire to contribute to any fund set up to pay Aboo’s outstanding arrears of QR40,000 and send him home at the earliest.
Aboo had run up the arrears while managing a restaurant in Fariq bin Mahmood. The restaurant was closed in 2001. Following a legal battle with his landlord, Aboo was ordered to clear his debts before he left Qatar. He said he had so far repaid about QR150,000 to the building owner by doing odd jobs.
The 61-year old has not seen his family for more than nine years. He last saw his only daughter when she was 10 years old. The daughter, he said, is now of marriageable age and is staying with her mother, who is not keeping well these days.
Indian Community Benevolent Fund (ICBF) president Dr Mohan Thomas said he was only too happy to help Aboo go home. “In my personal capacity, I made some inquiries and it was found that the person to whom Aboo owed the money is presently out of the country and will be coming back shortly,” he said.
Dr Thomas has also agreed to speak directly to the person, who is a prominent Qatari businessman.
As the first step to back the initiative, Dr Thomas announced a personal contribution. He said those interested in helping Aboo reach home could make their contributions directly to the ICBF help desk at the Indian embassy.
He said receipts would be issued for all donations.
A representative of a prominent business group has also offered to help Aboo. “I can understand that the poor man has suffered more than enough,” he said.
An Indian woman who works for a bank, also offered to help Aboo. “I could well gauge the predicament of a poor man, who has been away from his dear and near ones for so many years,” she said.
Representatives of at least three expatriate forums offered to help. An office-bearer of Friends of Thrissur (FoT) said its members would work out a plan to send Aboo home. “Aboo, who happens to be from Thrissur district in Kerala, may be known to some of our members but no one had brought the issue to our attention until yesterday,” he said.
Members of qatar living.com also have launched a campaign to send the stranded Indian home.
Meanwhile, an Indian embassy official said yesterday that the mission would be talking directly to the lawyer, who had reportedly agreed to help Aboo out by settling the case with the landlord for QR25,000. http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=230810...
Home:Qatar
Individuals, groups offer to help stranded expatPublished: Saturday, 19 July, 2008, 12:22 AM Doha Time
By Ramesh Mathew
A NUMBER of people and organisations have come forward to help P Aboo, an Indian expatriate who has spent the past seven years trying to pay back QR200,000 in rent arrears, after his plight was published in Gulf Times yesterday.
Reacting to the report, many members of the Indian community expressed a desire to contribute to any fund set up to pay Aboo’s outstanding arrears of QR40,000 and send him home at the earliest.
Aboo had run up the arrears while managing a restaurant in Fariq bin Mahmood. The restaurant was closed in 2001. Following a legal battle with his landlord, Aboo was ordered to clear his debts before he left Qatar. He said he had so far repaid about QR150,000 to the building owner by doing odd jobs.
The 61-year old has not seen his family for more than nine years. He last saw his only daughter when she was 10 years old. The daughter, he said, is now of marriageable age and is staying with her mother, who is not keeping well these days.
Indian Community Benevolent Fund (ICBF) president Dr Mohan Thomas said he was only too happy to help Aboo go home. “In my personal capacity, I made some inquiries and it was found that the person to whom Aboo owed the money is presently out of the country and will be coming back shortly,” he said.
Dr Thomas has also agreed to speak directly to the person, who is a prominent Qatari businessman.
As the first step to back the initiative, Dr Thomas announced a personal contribution. He said those interested in helping Aboo reach home could make their contributions directly to the ICBF help desk at the Indian embassy.
He said receipts would be issued for all donations.
A representative of a prominent business group has also offered to help Aboo. “I can understand that the poor man has suffered more than enough,” he said.
An Indian woman who works for a bank, also offered to help Aboo. “I could well gauge the predicament of a poor man, who has been away from his dear and near ones for so many years,” she said.
Representatives of at least three expatriate forums offered to help. An office-bearer of Friends of Thrissur (FoT) said its members would work out a plan to send Aboo home. “Aboo, who happens to be from Thrissur district in Kerala, may be known to some of our members but no one had brought the issue to our attention until yesterday,” he said.
Members of qatar living.com also have launched a campaign to send the stranded Indian home.
Meanwhile, an Indian embassy official said yesterday that the mission would be talking directly to the lawyer, who had reportedly agreed to help Aboo out by settling the case with the landlord for QR25,000.
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=230810...