Filipino expats urged to exercise franchise

RIYADH: A Filipino leader has appealed to expatriates in the capital to exercise their voting right for the May 9 Philippine presidential elections, voting for which will begin here four days later.

Registered overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) can vote between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on April 9 at the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh. The voting process will run for one month, from Monday to Sunday.

An advisory from the embassy says that OFWs should bring any of the following documents: Original passport, voter ID or Iqama.

John Leonard Monterona, lead convener of the New OFW Forces Worldwide (OFW Forces) based in Riyadh said that an overseas absentee voter (OAV) should not waste his or her vote. “A good citizen must regard his right to vote a social responsibility as member of a polity periodically electing leaders who will run the government.”

Asked if he is expecting a higher turnout in Riyadh, Monterona said he is hoping for a repeat of the 2004 presidential elections, which had seen a 65 percent turnout of OFWs.

“A 65 percent or even higher OAV turnout is possible during the upcoming 2016 presidential elections. Just like the 2004 presidential elections, popular candidates are vying for the presidency,” he said.

In the 2013 midterm elections, the overseas voter turnout was only 16.11 percent, way behind the Commission on Elections target of 60 percent in major precincts around the world.

“I would expect Filipinos from places such as Riyadh, Jeddah, and Al Khobar (Saudi Arabia); Abu Dhabi and Dubai (UAE), Doha-Qatar, Manama-Bahrain, Kuwait and in Tel Aviv-Israel with a total OAV of 593,834 will go out and cast their votes, thus resulting in higher turnouts,” Monterona said, adding that an automated election system will be used in these countries.

The total OAVs, land-based and seafarers combined, in other regions are as follows: Asia-pacific 344,857, North and Latin America 275,689 and Europe 161,687. The total number of OAVs is 1,376,067.