MANILA, Philippines - Despite the civil war that is happening in Syria, The Philippine Embassy in Damascus resumed overseas voters registration on May 7 for the 2016 presidential elections.
The Embassy’s overseas voters registration machine operator, Julian Vasquez, assisted Vice Consul Francis Maynard S. Maleon, Rapid Response Team member Rex Malimban and eight other eligible voters for biometric capturing on the first day of registration.
Last May 4, in the celebration of Labor Day hosted by the Filipino Community in Syria (FCS), Vice Consul Maleon announced the resumption of the voters registration at the gathering of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) at St. Anthony Parish Church.
While the Mandatory Repatriation Program of the Philippine government for all Filipinos in Syria is being implemented, there are a number of Filipino nationals married to Syrians with children, who chose to remain in Syria. The Philippine Embassy also intends to conduct mobile registration in the cities of Lattakia and Tartous where some OFWs still reside and work.
During the 2013 mid-year elections, when the embassy was unable to take part in the overseas voters registration due to the intense violence that erupted in the country. (Iza Iglesias)