JDV assures passage of absentee voting law

Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. has assured Filipino workers in the Middle East that Congress will soon approve the Absentee Voting Bill that would allow them to vote in the 2004 presidential elections.

"We will have a new law as we promised for the 2004 elections," De Venecia told cheering Filipinos in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

He said the House and the Senate, which resume their sessions today, will "work non-stop to reconcile their wide differences" on the proposed absentee voting measure.

"President Arroyo has vowed to sign the bill within 24 hours after Congress approves it," he said.

More than four million overseas Filipino voters are expected to take advantage of their right to vote with the measure’s enactment. Their votes could make the difference in 2004 and future elections, analysts said.

This has prompted some opposition leaders to warn lawmakers that the next ground for cheating would not be here but abroad.

The House and the Senate have widely divergent versions on some sensitive provisions of the Absentee Voting Bill, including those on the manner and place of voting and counting.

De Venecia passed by the United Arab Emirates and Qatar on his way home from Iran and Russia where he headed a team sent by President Arroyo to look for non-traditional sources of crude oil.

His team members were Energy Secretary Vince Perez and Presidential Adviser for Job Creation Luis Lorenzo.

Officials in Russia, Iran and Qatar offered them oil supply augmentation in case the country needs additional crude.

In the Emirates, De Venecia said officials told him they intend to recruit more Filipino workers once they start building two new satellite cities with 41 hotels, a new international airport and high-end residential and commercial complexes.

He said more than 30,000 new jobs would be available.

He revealed that the Emirates International Airlines plans to increase its weekly flights from Manila from six to 14 to accommodate more passengers and cargo.

This is an indication of the confidence the UAE leadership has in the Arroyo administration, De Venecia said. — Jess Diaz