12 May 2004 – With the success of the overseas absentee voting exercise, and a day before the counting of overseas ballots is to be completed, Foreign Affairs Secretary Delia Domingo Albert today commended personnel in all foreign service posts.

In her commendation, contained in a circular fax to all foreign service posts, Secretary Albert stated “The historic initial implementation of the Overseas Absentee Voting Act is about to come to a close.  We have collectively achieved a voter turn-out rate of 65%.  It is a performance that meets the target we have set and is within the level of voter turn-out rate in elections in the Philippines.”

The Secretary stated in her commendation “For this, our hardworking personnel at the Posts, including their partners in the community and the attached services, and those in the Overseas Absentee Voting Secretariat, deserve the Filipino people’s gratitude and commendation.”

The Secretary also took note of the positive comments made by international election observers on overseas absentee voting.

“Representatives of international observer missions have taken cognizance of the efficient handling of the initial implementation of the country’s Overseas Absentee Voting Act,” the Secretary said.  A noted foreign election expert who is involved preparing elections in Afghanistan and Iraq told the Secretary that “the Philippines has had one of the most successful overseas absentee voting programs and that many countries can learn from the Philippine experience.”

A little over an hour after the close of voting on 10 May 2004, the Comelec-DFA Overseas Absentee Voting Monitoring and Action Center (OAV-MAC) received the first set of Certificates of Votes from Havana, Cuba.  Nearly half of the Special Boards of Election Inspectors have submitted such reports, and it is projected that all reports shall have been submitted to the OAV-MAC at the strike of midnight on 13 May 2004, at the latest.

In her commendation, the Secretary said that “Today, 12 May 2004, the first sets of Certificates of Canvass for Laos and Cambodia were received by the Philippine Senate.  With this development, the final stage of the OAV implementation has simultaneously commenced.  It is projected that by 15 May 2004, the implementation of the OAV Act for purposes of the 10 May 2004 national elections shall come to a close.” END.