US group wants earlier preparations for future PHL polls

A United States-based human rights group has called on the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to prepare earlier for future automated polls to avoid problems experienced in the May 2010 polls. The Carter Center, a non-government organization founded by former US President and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Jimmy Carter, had sent a mission to observe the May 2010 automated polls to “assess the impact of automated voting technology electoral process." In its report, the Carter Center mission stated that the Philippine poll body should “ensure that the electoral calendar provides adequate implementation for all stages of automation." “In the future, COMELEC should ensure that plans for the adoption of technology and implementation of the automated election system include sufficient time to complete all stages of the process, including resolution of any duly filed legal challenge," the group said. According to its website, the Carter Center is a group with “a fundamental commitment to human rights and the alleviation of human suffering." Significant challenges The group noted that while the use of the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines last year “proceeded smoothly on election day," the country still faced “significant challenges in the implementation of this new technology." The group particularly identified citizens’ lack of privacy in voting caused by long ballots, crowding in clustered precincts, and the “lack of transparency" in post-election audits as some of the problems that occurred during the 2010 polls. The organization then proposed that the COMELEC conduct earlier pre-election testing and transparency in the use of the automated election system. “While challenges related to the shortened electoral calendar appear to have been adequately addressed in 2010, The Carter Center did observe instances where the tight electoral calendar led to hasty operational decisions or implementation, which may be avoided in the future," the group’s report read. The group likewise recommended that the Philippine government pass a comprehensive electoral law since the country’s Omnibus Election Code is already “outdated" and “inapplicable to automated voting systems." Preparations underway COMELEC chief Sixto Brillantes Jr. said that preparations for the 2013 midterm polls are already underway. “Ngayon pa lang, two years before the elections, meron na nakaplano para by the end of this year, we already have a clear idea of what to do during the 2013 elections," he said in a phone interview. He added that the poll body already plans to procure equipment needed for the 2013 polls by next year so that it will have five months to conduct pre-election tests. Brillantes acknowledged the Carter Center’s observations that there were some “deficiencies" during the May 2010 polls, but maintained that last year’s elections reflect a “qualified success." He added that COMELEC personnel have been training in the past months to ensure that they are equipped with enough knowledge on automation. “We already have a strategic plan. Maaga pa lang, binuo na namin ang steering committee for the 2013 elections. We are confident that we will be able to correct mistakes committed in the past," he said. — MRT/VS, GMA News