Fernandez seeks Palace support
Sports commissioner Ramon Fernandez is now soliciting the support of Malacañang so that athletes bound for the 31st Southeast Asian (SEA) Games would be able to vote in the national elections on 9 May.
Fernandez, also the country’s chief of mission in the biennial meet, yesterday said he will reach out to Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, asking him to help them in their request to include the members of the national delegation in the list of local absentee voters.
Close to 1,000 members of the national delegation, including 626 athletes from 39 sports, are in danger of failing to exercise their right to suffrage after organizers set the SEA Games in Hanoi from 12 to 23 May.
Since most of the athletes are registered voters in various provinces, it’s going to be impossible for them to vote before flying to the Vietnamese capital to defend the overall crown that the country won in Manila in 2019.
Fernandez admitted that they want the athletes to be in Hanoi at least a week before the actual competition so casting their votes would truly be a great challenge.
He said he had already written the Commission on Elections (Comelec), but he has yet to get a reply, prompting him to reach out to one of the top Palace executives.
“No updates from Comelec, but I will write Executive Secretary Medialdea of the Office of the President to assist us with the Comelec regarding that matter,” Fernandez said.
Athletes are not covered by the local absentee voting, which is usually reserved for uniformed personnel, media and government employees who will be performing their duties on the day of the elections.
In a previous report, Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino floated the idea of sending members of Team Philippines to fly in batches so that they can still vote in their respective provinces.
Top sports officials even reached out to Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go to help them come up with a plan that would allow the athletes, coaches and team officials exercise their right to suffrage. Fernandez said Go had given his word to help them. “Sen. Bong Go has already said he will help us. I have yet to follow up about that. I will just have to remind him,” Fernandez said.