Automated polls finally certified accurate, secure

MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has finally secured a certification from the multi-sector Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) approving the automated election system (AES) to be used in the May 9 polls. 

Based on TEC Resolution No. 2016-001 dated April 30, the committee has certified that the AES is compliant with Republic Act 9369 or the poll automation law.

“The TEC, properly convened, resolves to issue this Certification that, in our qualified opinion based on the herein included documented results, the AES is operating properly, securely and accurately, as mandated by Republic Act 9369,” the TEC said.

The resolution was signed by TEC chairman Peter Antonio Banzon of the Advanced Science and Technology Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and committee members Raul Nilo of the DOST- Information and Communication Technology Office and Eden Bolo of Information Technology Department of the Comelec. 

Under the law, TEC must certify if the AES, including its hardware and software components, is compliant based on several “documented results.”

These include the successful conduct of final testing process followed by a mock election event in one or more cities/municipalities; successful completion of audit on the accuracy, functionality and security controls of the AES software; successful completion of source code review; certification that the source code is kept in escrow with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas; certification that the source code reviewed is one and the same as that used by the equipment and the development, provisioning and operationalism of a continuity plan “to cover risks to the AES at all points in the process such that failure of elections, whether at voting, counting or consolidation, may be avoided.”

TEC also requires that the AES has election management system, vote counting machines, consolidation/canvassing system, and electronic transmission service. 

The law states that the certification must be issued 90 days before election day.

But Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista said earlier that the delay in the issuance of certification was due to the reconfiguration of the VCMs to enable the printing of voter receipts.

Bautista added that delays are allowed provided there is a justifiable reason.