ALKHOBAR, 17 April 2004 — Big companies here in the Eastern Region have expressed support to the ongoing Philippine overseas absentee voting by providing free transportation to their Filipino employees who wish to cast their votes at the International Philippine School in Alkhobar.
Labor Attaché Delmer Cruz earlier asked the big companies with large numbers of Filipino workers, particularly those in areas far from Alkhobar, to allow their employees to vote by providing them transport service.
Cruz said that those who had already positively responded to his letter were M.S. Al-Suwaidi Industrial Services Company, Arabian Consulting Engineering Center, A.H. Al-Zamil Group of Companies, and AYTB Group of Companies.
Taysir Balbisi, human resource manager of Al-Suwaidi Co. in Jubail, told Arab News in a phone interview that his company is very supportive of Filipino community activities.
“We are partners of the Filipino government at all levels, and our Filipino employees are our business partners as well because of their reliability and dedication to work. In appreciation, we are supporting them to use our buses in any Filipino activities,” Balbisi said.
Balbisi said that his company employs around 5,000 Filipinos.
Abdulkarim Cortado, an office manager in the Al-Zamil Group, said his company had always been supportive of Filipino activities like the Community Day celebrations by providing transportation from their camps around the Eastern Region to the venue.
“Our president, Hammad A. Al-Zamil, whole-heartedly supports us particularly if there are huge gatherings sponsored by POLO-OWWA by allowing us to use our company buses,” Cortado said.
Al-Zamil has 3,000 Filipino employees in its different business establishments within the region, of which some 700 are registered to vote in the Philippines’ first absentee voting abroad.
Voting in the region is being held at the International Philippine School in Alkhobar (IPSA).
More than 1,300 Filipinos have voted at IPSA as of Wednesday but the number was seen to have drastically increased this weekend.
Cruz again appealed to community organizations in Alkhobar to continue to assist the embassy team at IPSA as crowd controllers, name verifiers and first aiders.
“We need at least 20 volunteers everyday during weekdays and at least 50 volunteers during weekends,” he said.
He encouraged those who are in nearby places like in Alkhobar and Dammam to vote on weekdays and save the weekends for those coming from Jubail, Hafr Al-Batin and other far-flung areas.
Cruz also appealed to voters to just follow the manning flow-chart posted at IPSA to ensure an orderly flow of the crowd, especially during weekends.
