'I felt that I was held hostage': Singaporean claims he was asked for 'tip' at Hanoi airport, immigration officer suspended
Travelling can be stressful, and the last thing you'll want is to be held up at immigration before boarding.
For this Singaporean man flying back from Hanoi, Vietnam, this was exactly the predicament he faced earlier this week.
In a Facebook post uploaded on Monday (Jan 2), this man – who goes by the name of Kugan Pillai – said he was at Noi Bai International Airport when he was held back at one of the immigration counters, reported BBC Vietnam.
"When it was my turn, I gave my passport to the immigration security officer and he gave me back my plane ticket and pointed to the word "Tip" on the ticket," he recounted.
"I was so confused. I thought someone had written it on my boarding pass and then I realised he was the one who wrote it."
Puzzled, Pillai then asked the officer how much money he has to give but the latter didn't say anything and just pointed to the word "Tip" while holding on to his passport, reported the Vietnam Posts website.
"I asked him [to clarify] but he just kept pointing to what he wrote," Pillai, who was in Vietnam on holiday from Christmas eve to Jan 2, added.
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Afraid his exit would be denied
He said he then asked that officer on the amount to give, and the latter allegedly said "200,000 dong (S$11)."
"But I only had 500,000 Vietnamese dong. I asked if I could change my money and he nodded," said Pillai.
"But after I gave the money, he was indifferent as if nothing happened and didn't give me any money back and I had to leave the counter when he asked me to go".
In an interview with BBC Vietnam, Pillai said he was afraid that if he didn't pass the officer the money, his exit would be denied.
The man elaborated that he was scared as he had heard "bad things happen" and he did not want his girlfriend who was travelling with him to be harmed if he didn't accede to that officer's request.
The man also said that he has travelled to "many places" but this was the first time he had encountered an incident like this.
"I know this may be normal in other countries, but I felt that I was held hostage [and that] if I didn’t give the money, I wouldn't get my passport chopped," he said.
He has reportedly contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) regarding the incident.
Officer put on administrative leave
Pillai said that he was very angry after the incident, and took a photo of the officer while waiting to check in their baggage.
"I've read and heard about corruption but not at the airport," he said.
According to the VietnamNet website, the airport immigration officer has been put on administrative leave, the Vietnam Immigration Department said on Thursday (Jan 5).
This comes after a report from the Noi Bai International Airport police.
AsiaOne has contacted Pillai and MFA for comment.
According to TripAdvisor, tipping is not commonly practised in Vietnam and people are generally not required to tip anywhere.
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wongdaoen@asiaone.com
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