MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Consul General to Hongkong on Wednesday denied allegations that the overseas voting in the Chinese special administrative region has been “chaotic and disorganized.”
Philippine Consul General to Hongkong Raly Tejada made the clarification during a hearing of the Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms of the House of Representatives after Filipinos in Hong Kong had complained that the consulate was not able to accommodate voters who went to the Bayanihan Center at Victoria Road, Kennedy Town on the first day of overseas voting.
Bayan Muna Rep. Ferdinand Gaite called for an immediate probe of the “chaotic and disorganized election system in Hong Kong.”
“I would like, of course, to address, the reason why I think we are here. There was an allegation that the voting in Hongkong is chaotic and disorganized,” said Tejada.
“I just want to refute this. I just want to state categorically that the conduct of overseas elections in Hongkong is neither chaotic nor disorganized,” he added.
Tejada, however, admitted that there were long lines on the first day of overseas voting, which was cut by the Hongkong Police.
“The police were very worried about the situation, and rightly so,” he also said.
Tejada also cited the COVID-19 restrictions in Hongkong, where there is a two-person limit in public gatherings.
“In violation of two-person rule, hindi pa din sila nagti-ticket and pinabayaan nila yung ating mga kababayan na mag-linger at mag-usap usap doon,” he said.
Overseas voting began in Hongkong and other areas abroad on April 10 and will last until May 9.
There are some 93,000 overseas Filipino workers who are registered voters in Hong Kong.
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