Pimentel to Comelec: Adopt more reliable automated system

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines  — Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III said the Comelec should base its decision on the kind of automated system, for the coming elections, not only on financial considerations, but also on accuracy and reliability.

The senator, who was in Bacolod yesterday (Saturday), said: “As a victim of dagdag-bawas in the 2007 senatorial elections, I want to ensure the sanctity of the ballot and the integrity of our electoral process. So let us think long and hard as to what system we should adopt.”

The statement of Pimentel, chairman of the Senate committee on electoral reforms, came on the heels of the decision of the Comelec to buy and use the 2010 precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines for next year’s midterm polls.

Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes said Friday that the commissioners have agreed to “exercise the option to purchase” the PCOS machines rented from Smartmatic International Corp. because the poll body’s budget for the 2013 polls is only P7 billion.

Smartmatic has asked the Comelec to purchase the PCOS machines used in 2010 at a big discount. The machines are still kept in warehouses up to now and Smartmatic says the government would be able to save big money by buying the used machines instead of using a new poll automation system. The Comelec would buy some 80,000 PCOS machines for P1.8 billion.

While the nationwide automated 2010 national and local polls resulted in the speedy counting of votes, Pimentel said IT experts had identified shortcomings in both the PCOS hardware and software that may have affected the results.

Pimentel said Smartmatic refused to reveal the source code used for the PCOS system, citing the lack of proprietary rights. The Comelec had only leased the PCOS machines from Smartmatic. “Why did the Comelec deal with an entity which did not own the source code?” he said.

Pimentel also asked the Comelec to stop any further payments to Smartmatic Corporation for the PCOS machines used in the 2010 national and local elections, suggesting instead using such money as compensation for the glitches of the firm’s machines that marred that elections.

“It makes no sense to adopt the same poll automation technology in succeeding elections, particularly in 2013 and 2016, if the glaring defects of the PCOS system are not rectified this early,” the senator said.

Last month, Pimentel launched i-PCOS (Improved Precinct Count Optical Scan machines) that would require Comelec to improve the PCOS machines’ application, efficiency, and transparency. “i-PCOS is a call to the Comelec as well as a challenge for it to do a better job of guarding and ensuring the integrity of the will of the Filipino electorate,” he said.

“Respect the automated election law by observing all the minimum system requirements and allow freely source code review. It is a call to eliminate fraud altogether,” said the senator.

“The 2010 automation technology as exemplified by the PCOS needs improvement and refinement, in order to plug the loopholes and make it fool-proof. That is why i-PCOS is absolutely necessary. It is incumbent upon the Comelec to act now, and act with wisdom, knowing what works and what doesn’t,” he said.

Meanwhile, Brillantes said that Smartmatic is now correcting the deficiencies experienced by the PCOS machines in the 2010 polls. “We decided to buy the hardware and the software of PCOS machines. But this is still subject to conditions. There are some corrections, modifications and enhancements that Smartmatic was required to do before the Comelec buys the machines,” he added. (FREEMAN)