Escudero warns of 'a repeat' of Mega Pacific mess

MANILA, Philippines - Senator Francis Escudero on Monday warned of a repeat of the botched P1.3-billion Mega Pacific deal if the Commission on Elections fails to make public the details of its plan for the automation of the 2010 elections. Escudero told reporters the poll body should explain in detail its plans as the country could no longer afford another costly mistake. In 2004, the Supreme Court declared as void the P1.3-billion contract entered into by the Comelec and Mega Pacific Consortium for the purchase of automated counting machines for "clear violation of law and jurisprudence" and "reckless disregard of [Comelec's] own bidding rules and procedure." The senator said that up to now, the government is yet to recover the P1.2 billion it paid to the supplier for the automation program, and that it is still paying the rent of the warehouse where the 1,991 counting machines are stored. “Baka ganito na naman ang mangyari at kailangan natin ang kasiguruhan na hindi ito mauulit [This might happen again. We need assurance it won't happen again]," Escudero said. “Computerization does not mean that the polls can no longer be tampered with. In previous elections, one needs five fingers to cheat. Now unscrupulous individuals may only need a finger to tamper with the poll results," Escudero said. He said that during the previous Senate hearing on the poll automation, the Comelec failed to give the committee its proposed design and even pointed to the group of experts which includes the suppliers. "Umaasa sila sa technology providers para sa design [They are relying on the technology providers for the design of the poll automation project]," Escudero said. He also asked if the Comelec has already complied with the requirements of the law before it can implement the automated elections system nationwide. He said that one of the requirements is to launch pilot areas in at least two urbanized areas in the country and two provinces each in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. He added that the chosen system should have been tested in past elections before it can be implemented nationwide. - Amita O. Legaspi, GMANews.TV