Comelec extends local absentee voting til March 15

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has extended the registration for local absentee voting in the 2010 polls until March 15. In an interview with reporters, Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said the Comelec en banc has decided to extend the deadline of the registration for local absentee voting by one week to accommodate more voters. "We hope people will avail of this," Larrazabal said. Covered by the local absentee voting, to be held from April 24 to 26, are government officials and employees as well as members of the military and police force who will be on election duty in places where they are not registered on May 10, election day. Earlier, Comelec committee on local absentee voting head Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said that few registered for this year compared to the 2007 elections. He said that in the 2007 elections, about 50,000 registered and 40,000 of them qualified. Larrazabal said that as of Monday, only about 6,000 have registered. But Larrazabal remained optimistic that the number would still increase. "Usually naman people apply during the last minute, that is expected to surge," he said. Last February, the Comelec released the guidelines for local absentee voting. Those who wish to avail of the privilege must file their application forms before the head of their office. The head of the office must then submit to the poll body the accomplished applications and a certified list of their personnel who wish to vote offsite. If approved, they shall be allowed to vote anytime from April 24 to 26 in the place designated by the head of their agency and in the presence of an authorized Comelec representative. But just like overseas absentee voters, local absentee voters shall only be allowed to vote for national positions. A total of 50,723,734 Filipinos in the country are qualified to vote while 589,830 more Filipinos abroad are expected to participate in the overseas absentee voting in the May automated polls. - Kim Tan/RSJ/KBK, GMANews.TV