‘Tono’ all set for charity Mekong swim, aims for 10m baht in donations
Actor and singer Phakin “Tono” Khamwilaisak’s mission to brave the raging currents of the Mekong River to raise funds for hospitals has already earned about 8 million baht.
Phakin’s “One Man and the River” mission’s aim is to raise funds for two hospitals – one in Nakhon Phanom in Thailand and another in Laos’s Khammounane province.
His plan is to swim the 15-kilometre width of the Mekong River both ways on Saturday under the watchful eye of his team.
He said on Friday that all preparations for the event have been made, adding that the fund started with 1 million baht from him and another million from key donors.
He said he was surprised to see that his mission has already raised more than 7 million baht, adding that he was proud that both Thai and Laotian people understand its importance.
Phakin said the main goal was to help the hospitals acquire the latest medical equipment and hoped the donations will rise to about 10 million baht by Saturday.
He also said he hopes the event will help improve bilateral ties between Thailand and Laos, now that Covid-19 is under control and the countries have opened their borders.
He also hoped the event would help stimulate the local economy, especially in the Northeast of the country.
Phakin added that once he has completed his mission, he will travel to Laos to make merit and meet with medical staff at the hospital receiving the donation.
In 2019, Phakin initiated the “One Man and the Sea” mission to combat pollution from single-use plastic. The mission, in which he swam between 12 islands, was a big success and he was named Sustainable Ocean Ambassador at the UN Ocean Conference that year.
The first such high-profile fund-raising mission was launched by rock star Artiwara “Toon Bodyslam” Kongmalai in 2017 when he ran from Thailand’s southernmost to northernmost tip and raised 1.3 billion baht for 11 hospitals.
Though the actor’s intentions are obviously good, many critics have also slammed him and other celebrities for only launching fund-raising events but not questioning the powers that be for their failure in providing adequate funding to schools and hospitals.
