WHEREAS, the Committee on Overseas Absentee Voting (COAV), received and continues to receive requests for correction of misspelled names and other entries in the Certified Lists of Overseas Absentee Voters (CLOAV) and voter's IDs which was approved and released by the Commission for purposes of the 10 May 2004 National and Local Elections;

      WHEREAS, Sections 17 and 18 of Resolution 7447 of the Commission en Banc promulgated on 18 March 2005 in relation to the 2005 continuing overseas absentee voting registration provides that:

     Section 17. Inclusion in the National Registry of Overseas Absentee Voters. - All approved applications for registration/certification shall be included in the NROAV.

     All approved applications of overseas absentee registrants shall also be added in the Registry of Overseas Absentee Voters (ROAV) of the city or municipality where the registrant is domiciled.

     For purposes of the 14 May 2007 National Elections, the NROAV shall be prepared not later than 30 November 2006.

     Section 18. Voters excluded from the National Registry of Absentee Voters through inadvertence or registered with an erroneous or misspelled name. - Any registered overseas absentee voter whose name has been inadvertently omitted, or whose name has been misspelled or written erroneously in the NROAV, may personally or through his authorized representative, file with the COAV, not later than 15 December 2006, an application for reinstatement or correction of his name.

      WHEREAS, in the recently held Training of the DFA Personnel on the General Instructions for the System of Continuing Registration and Updated DCM Software, the necessity of amending or supplementing Resolution 7447 to include standard forms for correction of entries in the NROAV, CLOAV and voter's IDs was raised;

      WHEREAS, in relation to the above, the COAV formulated an Application for Reinstatement in the National Registry of Overseas Absentee Voters (OAVF No. 1D) and an Application for Correction of Wrong Entries/Misspelled Names/Change of Name & Other Entries in the Voter's ID/CLOAV/NROAV, respectively attached as Annexes A and B to this Resolution and made integral parts hereof.

      NOW, THEREFORE, premises considered, the Commission RESOLVED, as it hereby RESOLVES to AMEND Sections 17 and 18 of COMELEC Resolution No. 7447, to read as follows:

     Section 17. Inclusion in the National Registry of Overseas Absentee Voters. - All approved applications for registration/certification shall be included in the NROAV.

     All approved applications of overseas absentee registrants shall also be added in the Registry of Overseas Absentee Voters (ROAV) of the city or municipality where the registrant is domiciled.

     For purposes of the 14 May 2007 National Elections, the NROAV shall be prepared and the same published at the website of the Commission not later than 30 November 2006.


      Section 18. Voters excluded from the National Registry of Absentee Voters through inadvertence or registered with an erroneous or misspelled name. - Any registered overseas absentee voter whose name has been inadvertently omitted, or whose name has been misspelled or written erroneously in the NROAV, may personally or through his authorized representative, file with the COAV, not later than 15 December 2006, a verified application for reinstatement or correction of his name.

     For this purpose, the registered overseas absentee voter shall accomplish OAVF No. 1D if the application is for the reinstatement of his name in the NROAV.

     Registered overseas absentee voters applying for correction of wrong entries, misspelled names, change of name by reason of marriage or by virtue of a court order, and change of any other entries in the NROAV, CLOAV and the voter's IDs shall accomplish a verified application (OAVF No. 1E).

     Only correction of entries in the voter's IDs shall be allowed by the Commission even after 15 December 2006.

 
     Let the Education and Information Department (EID) in coordination with the Chairman of the Committee on Absentee Voting implement this resolution. Upon promulgation thereof, the Information Technology Department (ITD) is likewise ordered to upload the supplemental resolution at the COMELEC website.

      SO ORDERED.