CHIANG RAI, 8 February 2014 Large numbers of Chiang Rai residents have complained about the inadequacy of the passport issuing service, given the temporary office in the city has ceased operation without notice.
People who came to the issuing office on Friday found it had already closed. They were told to go to the adjacent province of Chiang Mai instead.
However, residents said the Chiang Mai office could only issue 200 passports a day. They have to wait in a long queue for days to apply for passports. They claim the government should therefore open more temporary offices nationwide in order to serve Thais’ growing need for passports.
A temporary or mobile passport issuing office has become necessary as the main venue at the Consular Department on Chaeng Wattana Road in Bangkok has been forced to shut down its computer servers, due to the seizure of the Government complex by anti-government protesters.
