New PHL consul general to Riyadh assumes post

Philippine officials in Saudi Arabia expect to improve their services to Filipinos in the Kingdom with the arrival of a career foreign service officer at the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh.

Ambassador Ezzedin Tago said new consul general Marshall Louis Alferez will be a "valuable addition" to the embassy, Saudi news site Arab News has reported.

"I welcome him as a valuable addition to the Philippine Embassy. He’s competent and his posting here will be a valuable experience for him as a Filipino diplomat," Tago said.

Tago said Alferez will supervise the embassy's consular and assistance to nationals sections.

He said he expects Alferez to draw from his experience in past posts to serve him well at the Embassy in Riyadh.

“He served in various capacities at the DFA, as Principal Assistant at the Office of Intelligence and Security from November 1996 to April 1997,” he said.

Career foreign service officer

Alferez graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Research at the University of the Philippines in Diliman in 1993, Arab News said.

It said Alferez started his stint in government as a technical assistant with the then Office of the Press Secretary (OPS).

But Tago said Alferez passed the Foreign Service Officer examinations in 1995, then joined the Department of Foreign Service in 1996.

In his foreign service career, Alferez was posted at the Philippine Embassy in Bangkok as Third Secretary and Vice Consul and Alternate Representative to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia-Pacific.

He also served as Second Secretary and Consul and Alternate Representative to the UN Economic and Social Commission.

Tago said Alferez also acted as Principal Assistant for Political Cooperation at the Office of ASEAN Affairs, assisting in formulating Philippine positions on regional and political-security issues.

Alferez was also posted at the Philippine Embassy in Bangkok; Second Secretary and Consul and Alternate Representative to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia-Pacific; and First Secretary and Consul and alternate Permanent Representative to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia-Pacific.

He was also assigned at the Philippine Embassy in London as First Secretary and Consul in charge of Political Section and eventually became Minister and Consul.

"He had received several awards and undergone numerous special trainings," the Arab News report said. — LBG, GMA News

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