11 April 2016 - The Philippine Embassy in Oman opened its doors to the public for the Overseas Absentee Voting on April 09.

Philippine Ambassador to Oman Narciso T. Castañeda, and Madame Cleofe Castañeda were the first to cast their votes in the Sultanate.

Registered Filipino voters started arriving early at the Embassy, eager to take advantage of the last day of the Middle Eastern weekend.

Some of the early birds included Rolando Leron, a project manager based in Sur.  It was his first time to vote abroad, despite having spent 17 years in Oman, because this year his vacation time in the Philippines did not coincide with the voting period abroad.  Marivic Ramada was also voting abroad for the first time, although she had been in Oman for eight years.  Eltham Gesu-an, working as a maintenance personnel for four years in Oman, was likewise voting for the first time.

Kauthar Canapia Arimao who arrived in Oman in January 2015 originated from Marawi but grew up in Manila, he now works in a halal meat shop in Sur. He added that he had learned about the start of the overseas absentee voting through the Embassy’s Facebook page.

Edilberto Cruz is a lecturer on the English language at an educational institution in Muladha, a town located around a hundred kilometres outside Muscat.  He has been in Oman for only four years but was casting his absentee vote for the second time.  He said that he actively monitors the announcements on the Embassy’s Facebook page.

Salvador Verdejo is an engineer in the oil and gas industry based in Muscat.  Like Edilberto, he had previously voted in the 2013 elections and was casting his absentee vote for the second time, although he had been in Oman for nine years.  He also kept himself updated with the Embassy’s announcements through Facebook.

Evelyn Lastimosa, who works as a cleaner, has been in Oman for seven years.  This is the first time she will vote in Oman, but she had voted abroad for the first time when she was still an OFW in Kuwait.

Felicitas Malutao, who hails from General Santos City, has been in Oman since 2005, but was voting abroad for the first time.  She teaches Kindergarten in Muscat.

Most of the first-day voters said that they learned of the start of the voting period abroad through the Embassy’s Facebook page or website.  Others learned by information passed on by compatriots in the Sultanate or from relatives in the Philippines.

A total of 188 OFWs voted on the first day of the 30-day overseas absentee voting period.  There are 11,389 registered Filipino absentee voters in Oman for the current national election cycle in the Philippines. END