Nairobi – Filipinos from all areas of Tanzania converged on the field voting mission in Dar es Salaam conducted by the Embassy of the Philippines in Nairobi on 5 May 2019.

The polls were opened by Ms. Renelyn M. Delupio who was part of a group of Filipinas working in The Taj Spa for the past eight years in Dar-es-Salaam, an establishment started by a Filipina businesswoman more than a decade ago. A Valenzuela native, Ms. Delupio commented that she arrived at the venue ahead of the opening hour to cast her vote, “para sa ikabubuti ng bayan at ikauunlad ng bansa.”

Mr. Alfredo O. Dimatera is a mechanical engineer who is the self-declared barangay captain of the Filipinos in Dar-es-Salaam, and has even facilitated the release of detained Filipino fishermen in Tanzania in 2015. Mr. Dimatera arrived in Tanzania in 1990 and has worked on many projects in the country including telecom towers, fuel depots and bus transport hubs.

He fondly remembered building the flag pole in the previous Embassy grounds in Nairobi at State House Road. At 75 years old, Mr. Dimatera shared that he came out of retirement when his company asked that he return since they needed his experience and expertise.

First-time voter, Ms. Ailene P. Frias, hails from Pampanga and has been working as an accountant for the past five years. She describes her experience in Tanzania as positive since this is where she met her husband and had her baby. She commented that she wanted to vote in the Senatorial Elections to see change and to be able to experience the resulting progress as well.

The Filipino community in Tanzania, who braved the unusually strong rains and flooding during the Embassy’s mission, appreciates the field voting in Tanzania and hopes that the COMELEC would continue allow field voting for the 2022 Presidential elections.  

Ms. Renelyn M. Delupio of Valenzuela City poses before dropping the first ballot in the Tanzania ballot box

 Mr. Alfredo O. Dimatera, a mechanical engineer, considers himself the ‘barangay captain of Filipinos in Dar es Salaam

Ms. Ailene P. Frias, an accountant with five years’ experience in Dar es Salaam, is a first-time voter who braved the strong rains on 5 May 2019 to reach the Embassy’s field voting mission