ARMM 2008 polls will be automated – Comelec

Next year’s election in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will be automated, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said yesterday.

Comelec Commissioner Resurreccion Borra said he has written Commissioner Angelo Timoteo Diaz de Rivera of the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) to determine which technology could be used for the ARMM election.

CICT is part of the advisory council tasked to determine which technology the Comelec can use to modernize the country’s electoral system.

In the letter, Borra said the council has to meet and decide which technology is suitable for use in the ARMM and 2010 elections.

“Hence, it is imperative that the advisory council must meet at the soonest possible time,” read the letter.

“Comelec technical consultants are preparing the necessary steps thereon, but RA 9369 states that the advisory council must decide and recommend to Comelec on the matter.”

Republic Act 9369 pertains to “Amending the Election Modernization Act.”

In an interview, Borra said the automation of the ARMM election is just part of preparations for the modernization of the 2010 presidential election.

“We are planning to implement automation in the ARMM election and we still have time to prepare,” he said. “That’s why I called on the advisory council to meet immediately.”

Borra said they could not automate the Oct. 29 barangay election for lack of time.

– Sheila Crisostomo