06 July 2004 – Secretary of Foreign Affairs Delia Domingo Albert lauded the successful separation of the conjoined Filipino twins operated on in Saudi Arabia and especially thanked HRH Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud for sponsoring the operation.

“The successful operation separating the conjoined Manzo twins under the aegis of Price Abdullah of Saudi Arabia underscores the continuing and deepening friendship between our two nations.  By giving the babies a chance at a better and brighter future, the Saudi government has not only performed a charitable act, but has also underscored the vibrant cooperation prevailing between the Philippines and Saudi Arabia.  On behalf of the Filipino people, I wish to thank most of all, HRH the Crown Prince and the medical team who performed the operation,” Secretary Albert said in a statement given to the media.

The twins Princess Ann and Princess Mae Manzo, accompanied by their mother, Carina Manzo and aunt,  Jocelyn will be arriving tomorrow at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, 07 July at one in the afternoon, aboard Saudi Arabian Airlines Flight No. SV-868.  The two babies with their mother and aunt spent about six months in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as guests of Crown Prince Abdullah.

The Manzo twins who were formerly conjoined at the lower abdomen, left Manila for Riyadh in January and underwent surgery on 20 March.  They were only four months old at the time of the operation.  The operation lasted for 14 hours and was even aired live over the Internet.  A thoracotomy and lobectomy were also performed on Princess Mae to correct a lung abnormality.  Seven days after undergoing the 14-hour operation jointly performed by a 50-man team headed by Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, both babies were reported to be recovering well and had resumed feeding by mouth.

Dr. Al-Rabeeah, Chief Executive Officer of the National Guard Health Affairs of the King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh (KAMC-Riyadh), first learned of the Manzo twins’ condition through a Filipino newspaper.  He then, through the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, arranged for the twins’ operation to be performed at the KAMC-Riyadh. On 03 July, Philippine Ambassador to Riyadh Bahnarim A. Guinomla hosted a well-attended dinner reception at his residence to bid the twins a safe trip home and to honor Dr. Al-Rabeeah.  During the occasion, Ambassador Guinomla presented Dr. Al-Rabeeah with a certificate of appreciation for “having done a special favor to the Manzo family…a humanitarian gesture that has added another milestone in the friendly relations between the peoples of Saudi Arabia and the Philippines.”  In response, Dr. Al-Rabeeah said now that the twins have been separated, it is our “hearts that have become conjoined.”  END.