Over 32,000 Pinoys cast votes 5 days into overseas absentee voting

More than 32,000 Filipinos have cast their votes within the first five days of overseas absentee voting.
Data from the Overseas Voting Secretariat of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) show that 32,564 Filipinos from around the world voted from April 9 to 7 a.m. of Wednesday, April 13 (Manila time).
The voters, broken down by region, are as follows:
  • Middle East and Africa - 14,453
  • Asia and the Pacific - 13,081
  • Europe - 4,485
  • Americas - 345
Meanwhile, the posts with the most number of voters so far are:
1. Hong Kong - 5,155
2. Singapore - 3,686
3. Abu Dhabi - 2,665
4. Dubai - 2,205
5. Doha - 2,038
6.  Riyadh - 1,880
7. Jeddah - 1,880
8. Al Khobar - 1,212
9. Manama - 850
10. Berlin - 844
Good number
"This is a very good number," said Commissioner Arthur Lim, head of the Commission on Elections' (Comelec) committee on overseas absentee voting.
"I hope that this is a good indication or a good signal that come May 9, 2016, when we shall be canvassing on the overseas polls, we should be able to at least surpass or breach the 50-percent mark," he told reporters Wednesday.
A total of 1,386,087 Filipinosregistered for the OAV for the 2016 elections — a record-high turnout.
"Kung makakuha man lang tayo ng 50 percent—about 600,000—that would make us very happy. Higher than 50 percent, bonus na po 'yun," Lim said.
The poll executive, however, maintained that they are still aiming for the 80-percent target earlier announced.
"That is still our target. That was and remains the target set for us by [DFA] Undersecretary [Rafael] Seguis, who is chairman of the overseas voting secretariat," Lim said.
Should the turnout be lower than 50 percent, Lim said they still should be able to "exceed the 16 percent turn-out in 2013."
In 2010, the last presidential elections, voter turnout for OAV was at 26 percent.
Asked for reasons for the turnout so far, Lim said this is probably due to a tight race between the five presidential candidates.
He noted that some of these candidates went overseas to meet with Filipino voters there.
"This is a presidential election at dikit ang labanan. It's but natural for candidates to give focus not only locally, but also abroad. One million can make a difference in an election... [The tight race] has generated a lot of interest among supporters and candidates," Lim said.
He added that interest has also been cultivated by traditional media and social media.
There is a total of 82 posts for OAV, 30 of which are using the automated election system. The rest of the posts are using manual or postal voting.
The OAV ends at 5 p.m. of May 9, as polling places are scheduled to close here in the Philippines as well. —KBK, GMA News
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/562557/news/pinoyabroad/over-32-000-pinoys-cast-votes-5-days-into-overseas-absentee-voting#sthash.X76bIeGS.dpuf

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more