'Insidious provision'

Overseas Filipinos claim pilot-testing provision inserted in House version of absentee voting bill

by JULIE JAVELLANA-SANTOS
OFW Journalism Consortium

MANILA-BASED advocates of the absentee voting bill (AVB) said they have discovered a pilot-testing provision stipulated in the House of Representatives' version of the measure.

Noel Esquela, Executive Director of the Internet-based non-government organization eLagda, said this "insidious" provision was re-introduced surreptitiously after it was rejected by the technical working group. But it was reinserted using different wording. In fact, the words "pilot testing" do not appear anywhere in the bill.

Instead, an apparently harmless provision in Section 4 on the coverage of the bill in the House version states that "the Commission is directed to prioritize the countries for absentee voting, taking into consideration the number of absentee voters therein and the prevailing budgetary constraints.

Comelec is sole arbiter

Esquela said this means "the Comelec (Commission on Elections) is the only agency which will determine the coverage of the absentee voting law. They should prioritize."

"But what are the Comelec's standards? The law is silent on this," Esquela said.

He added, "What is to stop President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo or the Comelec from favoring circumstances which are friendly to the current administration?"

He said, under this provision, the choice of area for pilot testing could depend on whether or not a certain party can win in the elections there.

This provision is worse than the fear expressed by Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesman Victor Lecaros that the ambassadors could be politicized by the absentee voting measure. Lecaros said it is possible that, to a certain extent, ambassadors will be pressured to deliver votes to the administration.

Former ambassador to Washington Ernesto Maceda suggested that with this provision, the ability of an ambassador to deliver votes to the administration and its candidates "will become a principal factor in the choice of ambassadors for places where there are large concentrations of overseas Filipinos (OFs)".

De Venecia's proposal

He said the original proposal for pilot testing the AVB in 10 countries was put forward by House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. during a courtesy call on him by a delegation of OFs two years ago.

The ten countries (Japan, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Italy, Taiwan, the United States including Guam, United Arab Emirates, Singapore and Great Britain), Esquela said, were chosen on the basis of the number of OFs residing or working there. Computations showed that the number of OFs in these 10 countries comprised 87 percent of all overseas Filipinos.

The excuse at the time, Esquela said, was that Comelec did not have enough funds for the infrastructure needed to fully implement overseas voting.

This proposal was rejected by the OFs who asked, "Is 13 percent so significant or such a burden to the Comelec that it will cause the collapse of absentee voting?"

Esquela experssed another fear that the Comelec could even "cut the budget to make the absentee voting law unimplementable."

Esquela said eLagda's misgivings about the House draft are supported by lawyer Henry Rojas and by other non-government organizations.

Hope springs eternal

However, hope springs eternal there is great confidence among OFs that the budget will be found for the implementation of the AVB once it is signed into law. A bicameral committee is set to thresh out the widely disparate versions of the AVB passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Alfred Ganapin, an AVB advocate in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, moderator of eLagda and co-convenor of the International Coalition for Overseas Filipino Voting Rights (ICOFVR) said wrote in an e-mail message, "I would like to put faith on their (senators and congressmen's) diligence and vision this time to have the law passed for the 2004 elections and ensure the budget for its implementation."

Ganapin added, "The Palace and both Houses (of Congress) should help ensure that the Commission on Elections (Comelec) gets its budget and allay the fears of Chairman Benjamin Abalos and others that there will not be enough."

He suggested that the technical working groups (TWG) should aid the bicameral conference committee on the absentee voting bill in producing a comprehensive study on the projected expenses for the AVB's implementation.

The TWG can, in turn, be helped by the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), the DFA and NGOs under the Philippine Migrants Rights Watch (PMRW).

P596 million Comelec budget

Ganapin pointed out that the Comelec under former Chairman Alfredo Benipayo, had prepared a P596 million budget proposal for the implementation of absentee voting prepared by Gideon De Guzman of the Comelec's Finance Services Department.

This budget estimate was premised on 6.5 million overseas Filipinos participating in the exercise, and on personal registration at the Comelec's main office in Intramuros for those who could do so and registration by mail for those unable to come home.

This estimate was made public by Comelec Commissioner Resurreccion Borra at a Congressional hearing on August 27, 2001.

Ganapin said although a P1 billion budget seems more realistic now, "it seems that then Chair Alfredo Benipayo was more optimistic than current Chair Abalos."

"If the former Chair has reason for clear optimism before, why should the new one not have the same now?" he asked.

The Benipayo budget set aside P225 million for travelling expenses of government officials involved in the information campaigns on the absentee voting process and its subsequent implementation.

Another P281 million was allotted for the preparation of the absentee ballots and P40 million for publications and advertisements in foreign newspapers.

Budget is not an excuse

Another AVB advocate, Rashid Fabricante, wrote, "Budget shall never be an excuse nor an issue-- the bicam contingent members and the leadership of the Senate and Congress know that pretty well. Why pass a law that cannot be implemented because of budgetary constraints?"

Fabricante is also actively involved in the ICOFVR in Riyadh where he has worked for over 20 years.

Marvin Bionat of the Global Coalition for the Political Empowerment of Overseas Filipinos (Empower) wrote from Boston, "The budget or lack of it is largely a political decision at this point, and I think there is enough political determination to provide for it. Unless something earth-shaking (such as a war) will throw things out of whack, I hope to vote in 2004."

Robert Ceralvo also of Empower, feels that the bill will be implemented in time for the 2004 elections. Otherwise "think about EDSA IV," he said. Isagani Manalo of the OFW-Congress in Riyadh said he is "hopeful that the OFW's will be able to vote on 2004 national election. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo must exercise and use all her powers and unique influences available under her sleeve to appropriate the budget for this election."

Alex Bello, a 41-year old OFW based in Riyadh wrote, "There is no reason why the AVB cannot be implemented in the 2004 elections. The cost to administer the AVB has become a glaring issue. But has anyone really conducted an exhaustive study of the envisioned budgetary requirement? With the great advancement in communication technology, what our government should look into is a design for the voting process that will both be cost efficient and tamper free."

Bring in IT experts

He added, "With so many IT (information technology) experts in the country today, our politicians should pick the brains of these highly qualified individuals who can come up with the proper mechanics of absentee voting."

Carlo Butalid, Executive Director of a Philippine Solidarity Group in Tilburg, The Netherlands said, "I think that the only real problem that would derail the implementation of the AVB in the 2004 elections would be the Comelec's incompetence."

He is confident that "the political and budgetary problems will be solved on time".

Max Bringula, area lead promoter of OFW Net Foundation/OFW International Holdings and an AVB advocate in Saudi Arabia is confident that the government senses "that they will be needing the OFW's votes very badly." He is also sure President Arroyo "will ensure that a budget is appropriated for its implementation."

Ganapin said if there is a moro-moro (song and dance) in the works, it should be exposed and strongly opposed. "Certainly a number of our kababayans have already become cynical about the political process and it's not difficult to imagine the clandestine trading and bargaining and the wheeling and dealing among politicians and legislators. But let us give them a chance to deliver this time. It could also be their moment of glory -- for the good of us all Filipinos, at home or overseas."

But Winda Petilla, ICOFVR member in Canada, was more realistic and cautious. Calling for vigilance, she wrote: "Anything is possible in Philippine politics. To fence oneself into a box of expectations is a mistake. We should, first and foremost, do what we can in every--and in any--way that we can, as long as it's not illegal, until the bill is enacted into law. We accomplish nothing with predictions. Rosy predictions can create complacency and disappointments; we need everyone concerned to be honed and on the edge."