500 4Ps beneficiaries taught on use of counting machines

CEBU, Philippines — To let the public be aware of the Commission on Election's new Automated Counting Machine (ACM), the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Visayas gathered around 500 beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) in Barangay Tayud, Liloan, Cebu.

The Comelec s voters  education roadshow aims to inform the public, especially those from marginalized communities, about the voting process ahead of the upcoming 2025 national and local elections.

These new ACMs are from Korean firm Miru Systems. The machine features an optical mark reader, direct recording electronic capability, over 14 hours of battery life, a 14-inch touchscreen, faster scanning speed, automatic receipt cutting, and a built-in voter s receipt compartment.

Other news features include transparency servers and scanning technology for a double-checking system, allowing voters to review their ballots on a 14-inch touchscreen panel for 20 seconds before the ballot is voided.

As demonstrated by officials from Comelec-7, the ACMs have an automatic feature in which voters no longer need to precisely align their ballot when feeding it into the machine.

Machines will then eat the ballot with a rate of 220 millimeters per second, compared to the previous 70 millimeters per second.

For the papers, it will now be a 90-gram per square meter (GSM) paper, a reduction from the 162 GSM used in 2022 which can help in speeding up the ballot process as it goes inside the machine.

Through the use of the newly-developed tablet, each voter now has the time to review their choices once more.

If a voter saw an undervote, he or she can claim the ballot again and make corrections before resubmitting.

A quick response (QR) code is also part of the new feature that voters receive after casting their ballot. This code, when scanned, verifies that votes were correctly recorded, while poll workers can use QR codes for additional verification post-voting.

Unlike in past elections where receipts were dropped into yellow ballot boxes, the 2025 elections will see machines equipped with a built-in receptacle for receipt storage.

Visually-challenged voters will have access to headphones and a clicker pad, allowing them to feed their ballot while the machine reads their choices aloud.

In a press release from DSWD-7, Christine Bantiwel, a 4Ps beneficiary from Barangay Catarman, Liloan, shared that the roadshow empowered her and other voters to be more vigilant during the election process.

"Ang importante nga akong nakat-onan nga mahimo kitang aktibo nga botante ug magbinantayon sa tanang kalihukan sa panahon sa eleksyon,  Bantiwel shared.

Comelec Commissioner Socorro Inting, DSWD-7 Assistant Regional Director for Operations Juanito Cantero, and other officials attended the event.

To better implicate awareness to the other DSWD-7 beneficiaries, they will also integrate election-related discussions through monthly Family Development Sessions. (CEBU NEWS)