First nationwide automated polls to test RP democracy

After hundreds of speeches, thousands of trips, and billions of pesos spent by national and local candidates, it is time for millions of Filipino voters to troop to the polling precincts for the country's first ever nationwide automated elections. Opposition Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, the son of revered pro-democracy icons, has topped pre-elections surveys in the nine-way race for the presidency. His rise reflects the longing to fill a moral vacuum in a country exasperated by decades of corruption, poverty and violence. Aquino's closest rivals include ousted President Joseph Estrada and Sen. Manuel Villar, the country's wealthiest politician. A blistering 90-day campaign ended Saturday, with most candidates promising to steer one of Southeast Asia's economic laggards back to the path to stability.

Despite scattered violence and a rush to fix a computer glitch, officials said Monday's elections would be a successful test of its fragile democracy. After addressing glitches in some Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines that would be used to count and transmit the votes, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said it is ready for the over 50 million registered voters who are expected to troop to over 76,000 precincts nationwide to vote. Investments for coveted posts were made even before the start of the official election period for national (February 9) and local candidates (March 26). For months, "Nakaligo ka na ba sa dagat ng basura?" was the question on everyone's minds, thanks to Villar's ubiquitous political ads depicting his supposed rise from poverty. So tight is the race for power that observers say this could be the most expensive elections in Philippine history yet, with the bulk of the amount poured onto television ads. Villar and Aquino have used up their limited air time, so they've resorted to "piggybacking" on the airtime of their party-mates and of party-list groups. Perceived mudslinging was evident on ads and on public statements made by candidates or their supporters. The Aquino-led Liberal Party recently slammed Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay, who is Estrada's running-mate, for his supposedly misleading TV ad endorsing him and Aquino as though they were a tandem for the May polls. At least two fake psychiatric reports alleging that Aquino had mental problems also came out, prompting some quarters to question Aquino's ability to lead the country even though it was proven that the documents were manufactured. Delivery of poll paraphernalia By the eve of Monday's vote, thousands of workers on board military and private aircraft — and some on foot — have delivered optical counting machines to 98 percent of about 76,300 precincts across the Southeast Asian archipelago, Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said. Gregorio Larrazabal, another commissioner, said the difficulty of tampering with the automated machines — though many have experienced glitches — may have prompted some people to resort to violence and intimidation to bolster their electoral chances. Police have reported more than 30 poll-related killings — a figure that does not include an election-linked massacre last November. Reconfigured memory cards for the machines have been delivered to regional hubs after a defect prompted a massive recall last week, according to Smartmatic-TIM, the consortium that supplied the machines. Late delivery and final testing may delay vote-counting in some far-flung areas, the elections commission said. In the worst scenario, about a million Filipinos will be able to vote, but their ballots won't be counted until the new cards arrive in those areas, the poll body said. The last-minute problem sparked calls for the polls' postponement and fueled fears of vote-rigging and violence that have long sullied Philippine elections. But the Supreme Court dismissed petitions to postpone the polls. In another flaw discovered Sunday, a button used to open a machine's menu program was found defective in more than 40 machines in northern Nueva Vizcaya province, which has about 400,000 voters, Sarmiento told The AP. Replacement buttons were rushed to the province on board helicopters, he said. "The best way to disprove all the critics who say that this cannot be done is just to do it," Larrazabal told AP in an interview. Social media at play The widespread utilization of the Internet, particularly social media, has enabled the public to spread information—truthful or otherwise—about certain candidates fast. The first fake psychiatric report spread over the Internet before its authenticity was debunked by its supposed author. "It's (social media) a tool, so it can be used positively or negatively, it really depends on the person who's using it," said Yahoo! Philippines social media editor Joey Alarilla in an interview with GMANews.TV's E-Gig a few months ago. "It's so easy for half-truths or even downright lies to spread from person to person if you repost it and somebody doesn't even bother to check the facts and then it spreads like wildfire," said Alarilla. Midway into the campaign, media establishments received anonymous e-mails debunking Villar's popular claim that he triumphantly emerged from poverty in Tondo. Aside from answering allegations that he used his influence in the multi-billion C-5 road extension project, that he got his billions through questionable means, and that he even tried to buy other contenders out of the presidential race, Villar also had to prove that he was dirt-poor as he claimed. Documents culled by GMANews.TV showed that Villar came from a double-income, middle-class family. At the height of the controversy, Villar’s 86-year-old mother, Nanay Curing, shed tears before the media while lashing against her son’s critics. If pre-election surveys are to be believed, Villar is no longer the sole second-placer and is now neck-and-neck with Estrada, the only Philippine president impeached by Congress and convicted of plunder. Aquino—who was thrust into the political limelight after his mother's death August last year has since remained at the top spot—has the lion’s share of votes from the upper economic strata, while Villar and Estrada’s support base come from classes D and E. But political analyst Bobby Tuazon of the Center for People Empowerment and Governance said Villar’s drop in the surveys were not necessarily because of the negative propaganda against the senator. “We can’t really take these results at face value. [SWS and Pulse Asia] will have to make an incisive analysis," he said. Power play Aquino's meteoric rise to popularity, despite coming from the influential Cojuangco and Aquino clans, changed the recent political landscape. He was able to maintain his survey ratings at no lower than 30 percent, prompting many local officials either inspired by his narrative or eager for political survival to jump to the LP from their own parties and shaking up old political ties. During the end of March, administration standard bearer Gilberto Teodoro Jr. resigned as chairman of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD to focus more on his campaign. Weeks later, disgruntled party members like House Speaker Prospero Nograles threatened to defect to other parties, voicing dissatisfaction with Teodoro. As if to prove there are no permanent allies in politics, the campaign season saw the switches in political colors of influential local leaders such as Bukidnon Gov. Jose Zubiri and former Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson, who have shifted allegiance to Villar, and Albay Gov. Joey Salceda who defected to Aquino. Zubiri, Singson, Salceda used to be allied with the administration, but after surveys showed the presidential polls could be a toss up between Aquino and Villar, the local kingpins went where the political wind blew. When officials jump ship, they usually deny their moves are for political expediency. But Tuazon says switching party loyalties are always expected in high-profile elections. “On the final stretch of the campaign, candidates are expected to align themselves with the perceived strongest presidential candidate. That is just patronage politics at work, where personalities are more important than principles. There is are no real political parties in the Philippines," he said. “Many candidates switch allegiances to ensure political survival," Tuazon added. Experts say local leaders play crucial roles in presidential campaigns because they act as conduits in delivering votes. Similarly, local leaders align themselves with the powerful — or those poised to rise to power — to gain access to public coffers, apart from other benefits. An interactive map prepared by GMANews.TV indicates that presidential candidates courted voter-packed provinces throughout the three-month campaign period. Areas with few voters were seldom visited. Automated cheating Despite their efforts to win over voters, many candidates are wary over the conduct of the polls. That some PCOS machines failed to read votes accurately during pre-testing in some areas have only worsened fears over possible "automated cheating," prompting some quarters to call for either a postponement of the elections or preparations for full manual count. “The source of all this chaos is the Comelec itself. The Comelec should be held accountable. What we [referring to watchdog groups, warnings of IT experts] have been saying since February 2009—we have anticipated all these scenarios—but the Comelec and media ignored us," said Tuazon. "[The voters] will be guinea pigs in a system that has never been tested, in the true sense of the word," he added. After the hundreds of promises made by their leaders, Filipinos troop to their precincts on Monday aspiring for credible and honest elections, hoping to banish the shadow cast by the “Hello Garci" scandal that tainted the last presidential polls in 2004. —with a report from AP/KBK, GMANews.TV