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Friday, March 12, 2004
Absentee voting begins today for Pinoy seamen abroad
OVERSEAS absentee voting officially starts Friday for sea-based workers abroad.
Philippine Consulate and embassy offices in about 84 posts will be open until 5 p.m. to accommodate the seafarers who have enlisted and want to cast their votes. Voting for sea-based workers will end on May 10, 2004 at exactly 3 p.m. (Philippine time).
Comelec chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr. said they expect the opening of the overseas absentee voting for sea-based workers to be normal since only a few seamen have enlisted to avail of their right to suffrage.
Records of the Overseas Absentee Voting Commission indicate that about 316,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have registered to participate in the elections.
Abalos said sea-based workers would have to call first the consulates or Philippine embassies where they intend to vote before they will be allowed to participate.
Data of the OAVC indicate that a big bulk of the voters will come from Hong Kong, followed by the OFWs in the Middle East and in Italy.
At least 8 million OFWs were earlier expected to register when the overseas absentee voting bill was enacted early last year.
However, the final count reached only over 300,000 as only a few Filipino migrants took the initiative to enlist.
According to the Comelec, the reason for the low turnout of registrants particularly in United States, which has an estimated 2 million Filipino migrants, was the provision in the law that mandates OFWs to return to the country within three years after casting their votes.
Abalos said this provision “makes the Filipino migrants… reconsider their desire to vote” as this will definitely have an effect on the processing of their status, specifically those applying for permanent residency or the green card holders.
Meanwhile, voting for the land-based workers will begin a month from now or on April 11 and will also end on May 10, 2004 at 3 p.m. (Marie Neri)
(March 12, 2004 issue)
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