Over 13K voters enlist in Antique since start of registration

SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) registered 13,457 voters in Antique from Feb. 12 until May 28, with at least half of the number reached through satellite registrations.

“The municipal election officers (MEOs) in the 18 towns of the province, aside from their onsite registration at their offices, also conduct satellite registrations in the barangays, malls, and schools,” Antique provincial election supervisor Salud Milagros Villanueva said in an interview Wednesday.

The off-site registration, aimed to reach out to possible qualified registrants who have constraints going to Comelec offices, will continue until they have saturated all 590 barangays of the province, she said.

Villanueva said they will have a voters’ education and registration fair at the University of Antique (UA) Main Campus in Sibalom town on June 4, where they will gather Comelec offices from 18 municipalities in one venue for a one-day registration.

The fair is an opportunity for the faculty and students from the various towns of the province to avail of services, including registration or application for transfer, correction of entry, and reactivation of their registration.

“We know that some students from the northernmost town of Libertad could not go home to register themselves, so we are giving them the opportunity to be able to register on June 4,” she said.

Comelec's Education and Information Department, on the same day, will discuss the importance of exercising their right to suffrage and other election-related topics.

Onsite registration will resume in municipal election offices after June 4, while they will continue holding satellite registrations until the deadline on Sept. 30. (PNA)