16 April 2014 – The Philippine Consulate General in Macau hosted the first Overseas Voting Training for the Resumption of Continuing Registration and Certification of Qualified Filipinos for the Asia-Pacific region held from April 9 to 11.

The training was conducted by Commissioner Christian Robert Lim, Atty. Maria Juana S. Valeza and Atty. Jannice Leigh D. Cañeba of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC).  Participants came from the Philippine Foreign Service Posts in Agana, Brunei, Beijing, Canberra, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Islamabad, Macau, New Delhi, Seoul, Shanghai, Sydney, Tokyo, Wellington and Xiamen.

Philippine Consul General in Macau Danilo T. Ibayan emphasized the important role of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in helping the voice of overseas Filipinos be heard through the ballot.  He stated that the efforts of the embassies, consulates and missions of the Philippines abroad will help ensure that the conduct of the next elections will be clean and safe, and bring the country closer to becoming a more stable and mature democracy. 

In his remarks read by Ms. Ginia Rica Concha, representative of the Overseas Voting Secretariat (OVS), DFA Undersecretary and OVS Chairman Rafael Seguis informed the attendees that they are targeting a total of 1,000,000 new overseas registrants and expressed high hopes that the Philippine Foreign Service Posts will outperform themselves to meet this goal.  He also provided an update on the new developments that can help improve the conduct of overseas voting.

The registration of overseas absentee voters for the 2016 national elections starts on 5 May 2014.  END