Bidders in ARMM poll automation face Senate today

MANILA, Philippines – Three bidders will demonstrate their voting machines during a Senate hearing today, setting in motion the resumed efforts to automate the Aug. 11 elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said yesterday.

Comelec commissioner Rene Sarmiento said the bidders are the Smartmatic Sahi Joint Venture, Active Business Solution (ABS) and Avente International.

Smartmatic is bidding to supply the direct recording electronics (DRE) machines that will be used in the ARMM province of Maguindanao.

ABS and Avante, on the other hand, have applied to supply the optical mark reader (OMR) that will be used in Lanao del Sur, Basilan and Shariff Kabunsuan.

“They’ll be doing a demonstration to show what their machines can do.  We want to find out if the machines are okay, if they can meet our requirements,” Sarmiento noted in a telephone interview.

Sarmiento claimed they would no longer be able to automate the elections in Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

“Because of the peculiarity of those places, it would be difficult for us to bring the technologies there. So the elections there will remain manual,” he added.

The Comelec is also expecting that the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) on Automated Election System will come up today with a resolution granting the poll body “legal cover” for relaxing its bidding rules.

Earlier, poll officials have already decided to cancel the automation because no bidders met their standards.

But the JCOC nudged the Comelec to push through with the plan even by loosening up with its bidding policies.

JCOC had promised to give Comelec protection against legal suit concerning the relaxation of bidding requirements. This prompted the poll body to give the three bidders another chance to show off their machines.

Sarmiento maintained that the Comelec is hopeful that there is still time to automate the ARMM polls although barely two weeks are left before the scheduled filing of certificate of candidacy there on May 13.

DRE is a touch-screen voting machine while OMR involves the printing of the candidates’ names on the ballots with corresponding ovals that will be shaded if they have been chosen by voters.