Comelec gets P1.6 billion for machine supply bids

MANILA, Philippines – Two consortiums have participated in the bidding for the P1.6-billion Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) project of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that will be used to cleanse the voters’ lists.

The bidders are the Filipino-owned Strategic Alliance Holdings Inc. (Sahi) and its partner Tiger IT Ltd. of Bangladesh, and local firm Unison Computer Systems Inc. and Japan’s NEC.

Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said that between the two bidders, Sahi-Tiger had submitted the lowest bid offer of P1.2 billion so it is now undergoing post-evaluation screening.

“Through this project, we will be able to eliminate double and multiple registrants from our voters’ lists. Cleansing the lists will then be done automatically,” he said in an interview.

AFIS includes the data capturing machines in which the biometrics of voters – fingerprints, photographs and signatures – are taken; data submission and system synchronization; cross matching and voter’s ID printing.

Comelec’s Bids and Awards Committee headed by Maria Lea Alarkon is supervising the bidding.

Although the Comelec has been implementing the biometrics system, it could not strike out double and multiple registrants due to lack of cross matching machines.

The Comelec believes that voters with double and multiple registrations are not necessarily flying voters, but those who, when changing residence, apply for a new voter’s registration instead of having their registration transferred to their new place of residence.

Sarmiento noted that the Comelec already lacks the time to fully implement the AFIS system for the 2010 polls.

But for starters, he said, the agency might be able to apply whatever they could achieve in the project in relation to the ongoing registration of voters for the next year’s election.

“We expect this to be fully implemented in time for the 2013 elections. This will complement the automation of our election system,” Sar­miento added. – Sheila Crisostomo