'It's not a question of technology but of security'

Both the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and Smartmatic TIM on Thursday dismissed suggestions that ballots in the first ever automated elections in May might be pre-accomplished by the camps of cheating candidates.

The poll body and the counting machines supplier were responding to a comment made by Nacionalista Party senatorial candidate Adel Tamano, who said the ovals in the newly designed ballots might be shaded by certain quarters in the course of their transfer and delivery from Manila to various precincts nationwide.

The Philippines will be using a new kind of ballot in May, where the names of all candidates will be printed, and the voter has to shade the ovals that correspond to the names of his preferred national and local candidates. The ballot will not be read out by election inspectors and will instead be fed by the voter himself onto the counting machine, which in turn will scan the shades.

Election Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal gave assurances that the colored ballots, to be printed starting on January 25, will be safely and properly delivered to its designated precincts.

He said the ballots will be packed and shipped in a sealed envelope. “The question as to the being shaded beforehand will not happen if the ballots packaging is still sealed” when they reach their destinations, he said.

How to shade the ovals
Larrazabal added that the envelope, which will be in the custody of the municipal treasurer days before the election, will be opened only by the Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs) on election day. “You can’t open [the envelope] and reseal it. It’s not possible. You can’t [pre-shade] beforehand.”

In a separate press statement, Smartmatic said it agrees with Tamano that “the question is not so much about technology but an issue of security.”

But Smartmatic said that for security, the BEI chairmen are required to affix their signature on the ballot. “This signifies that the BEI Chairman is handing out a ballot that is in pristine and un-tampered condition.”

The company said “pre-shaded marks that have been erased to escape detection by the voter would not be read by the PCOS.”

Smartmatic said the machines would only accept shadings that would reach the 50% marking threshold, meaning if at least half of an oval is shaded. “It is for this reason that we are strongly encouraging the voters to shade the ovals completely.”

The statement also encouraged voters to “examine the ballot upon receipt from the BEI Chairman, to ensure that the ballot is not pre-marked.” (Newsbreak)