1.7m OFWS register for midterm polls

‘For 2019, we have a total of 783,076 new voters. The perception of overseas voters is very relevant, they are reinvigorated and they are very active,’ says official

MANILA: More than 1.7 million overseas Filipino Workers (OFWS) have registered to vote in the coming May 2019 midterm polls, which represented a 77 per cent increase that showed their eagerness to participate in the electoral exercise less than ive months away, according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

“For 2019, we have a total of 783,076 new voters and this is because of the greater interest in our electoral system. The perception of overseas voters is very relevant, they were reinvigorated and they are very active recently,” Comelec oficial Jimenez told a media brieing.

Jimenez described the increase as a “good development” which represented a rise of 77.7 per cent in the number of OFWS who registered to vote when compared to the 2016 presidential polls in which 1.005 million overseas Filipinos had voted and which saw the election of President Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte.

For the coming May 13, 2019 midterm polls, Jimenez said, a total of 87 Philippine diplomatic outposts throughout the world would participate in the overseas voting.

The biggest increase was recorded in the Middle East and Africa which accounted for 889,114 of the OAVS (overseas absentee voters) population, including the 437,779 new registrants, Jimenez reported.

He added this was followed by Asia and Paciic with 388,619 and Europe with 175,000. “The area with the most OAV is the Middle East and the region has been consistent on this because they have the biggest contingency of overseas Filipinos.”

But unlike in the Philippines where the voting will be automated or computerised, the modes of voting for OAV would be either personal or postal using either automation or the manual system, depending on the location, Jimenez said.

In Europe, for instance, Jimenez said voting is mostly postal using both automated and manual systems, except in the Vatican where it is manual. But in Athens, Greece, he said it would be computerised through personal and postal voting.

The OAV voting, Jimenez said, will start on April.13 but the ballot will be kept at the posts until these are sent to the Comelec for counting at the end of the voting on Election Day, May 13, 2019.

The Comelec said that under the midterm polls, just ive months away, qualiied voters in the Philippines are to elect 12 senators on a national basis as well as regional, provincial, city and municipal oficials such as congrressmen, governors, mayors as well as members of town and city councils.

But the Comelec clariied that the OFWS are to vote only for the 12 senators as well as the sectoral or partylist representatives in the House of Representatives.

Party list representatives are to represent in the House the under-represented sectors in society like OFWS, retired teachers, policemen and soldiers, farmers, ishermen and small businessmen.

Earlier, police reported they are closely monitoring at least 19 “hot spots,” mainly due to unabated violence with most of them located in restive Mindanao as the election period for the coming May 2019 midterm polls started on Sunday.

Superintendent Kim Molintas, the deputy spokesman of the Philippine National Police (PNP), explained that most of the 19 towns and cities have a history of violence in past elections particularly in provinces of Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao and Basilan in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Molintas said the number of these “hot spots” could increase, depending on the close PNP monitoring before these areas are to be recommended and placed under the control of Comelec.