Poll watchdogs distrustful of automated election system

Several election watchdogs expressed apprehension on COMELEC’s automated election system (AES) allegedly due to lack of procedures and a failure to comply with the law. 

The National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), Automated Election System Watch (AES Watch), and Center for People Empowerment in Governance (CenPEG) said the system cannot not be trusted. 

“It is not compliant with the law. The law says that the election process must be transparent,” explained Namfrel National Chairman Gus Lagman. 

Lagman explained that around 70% of the ballot printing was not observed by concerned groups. And since Namfrel belatedly learned of the ballot printing schedule, he said only 30% of this process was inspected. 

AES Watch spokesperson Nelson Celis said the integrity of the system was not only about the technology but also about the procedures and the people who are managing it. 

“Kung titignan mo ang computers, technology, garbage in, garbage out, so whoever is the supplier it’s all about how you program the computer whether it is Smartmatic or Dominion. It’s all about people around it,” said Celes. 

Celis sought an update from COMELEC on reports of the certification of the automated election system. 

He asked for the “continuity plan” of the system, which is required in case of a system breakdown, delay, obstruction, or nonperformance of the electoral process. 

Former Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Eliseo Rio also said the AES could not be trusted. 

He said they had forwarded some recommendations for the conduct of the automated elections, among which was a random manual audit and requiring digital signatures in the system.