Overseas Absentee Voting 2019 - VOTED!

I voted this morning at the consulate for the OAV 2019 (the senatorial and party list) Mid-term election. #TeamPhilippines

I Voted Today!

Finally, I was able to cast my vote today at the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah --  that quick as I was able to complete my list only the night before. I couldn't be more excited trooping down to the Consulate to exercise my right to vote, but upon seeing those compatriots camped outside of the Consulate under a scorching sun, that  to me was just heart-breaking. 

Outside of the Consulate premises, hordes of people huddled under shady spots, most of them holding papers or sort of forms in their hands. Some even struggled to fill out the forms against the wall, noticeably women while ferociously fanning themselves with improvised hard papers. Conspicuously around were Saudi policemen at the entrance, maintaining peace and order as those who wanted to avail of the amnesty have basically occupied the the right side leading to the entrance.

Few days ago I had already written down my voter's number culled from the Consulate website so that I don't need to look like a helpless neophyte with a puny brain to boot while desperately looking for my voter's number in the official list. Due to a few voter's turnout today, I was able to double check my name in the list, in fact I had it photographed as proof :)

What made me excited even more was the manner of voting, understandably I wouldn't be able to write down the names of my candidates, instead I would have to shade them. The fear of my votes not being counted because of botched shading took me 10 minutes to complete my ballot. I think if there was an award for having done a perfect shading, I should get it. :)

As the election personnel slid my ballot down the PCOS machine, I got nervous when it was spewed out, I thought it didn't get validated. Or perhaps the man was more nervous than me as he slid it down the wrong way. Then lo and behold the second time it was validated and confirmed with the machine screaming a big congratulations! Yes, my votes were counted finally! 

If you ask me who did I vote? I think that's pretty given :) I voted for God-fearing candidates who could make a difference in the lives of the Filipino people. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord! God bless the Philippines!

I Have Already Voted!

Yesterday I cast my vote for the national elections in the Philippines via OAV, or Overseas Absentee Voting here at the new building of the Jeddah consulate. The voting process was very easy, there's not a lot of people who voted that day, so there's no queue.

Before I proceeded to the polling precinct, I searched first for my name in the list of voters, this is to make sure that I am really a registered voter in Jeddah. While searching for my name, a man came up to me and tried to help find my name, which I thought a gesture of kindness, but then after I found my name and my sequence number, he secretly showed me a piece of paper with a name of a candidate from his hand, perhaps a senate candidate or a party list candidate which I didn't quite read.

After searching for my name and sequence number, I went straight to a small room where the actual voting takes place. The 2 members of the BEI (Board of Election Inspectors) who take charge of the precinct asked my name, sequence number and my ID. After checking, they gave me an empty folded ballot. It only took me less than 10 minutes to vote for president, vice president, 12 senators and a party list group. After I completed writing my candidates on the ballot, I dropped it inside a small brown paper box (and posing for the camera while doing it. lol!).

It was a great experience. That was my first time to vote outside the Philippines and only my second to vote in any elections. I've done my part. I really feel that I've fulfilled one of my duties to my country, I just hope that everything turns out the way it should be.

I Voted And Insist It To Be Counted!
(A Friend's Blog Post)