CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Automated poll machine provider Smartmatic-TIM is encouraging voters to prepare “codigos” on candidates they will vote for this May elections so as to avoid “over-voting” that could waste all their votes altogether, particularly for senators.
“It (codigo) is a must for voters,” Smartmatic-TIM spokesperson and public relations manager Gene Gregorio told Punto! in a telephone interview yesterday. The word “codigo” is usually used by students to refer to any material used for cheating during class examinations.
“It would also be useful for political parties to provide sample ballots which voters can use to assist them in voting,” he said.
Gregorio said that an education campaign on the automated polls should carry “two key messages”, namely, that voting will be easy and that voters would be cautious about over-voting.
In a recent seminar held by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), election lawyer Louie Guia warned that shading spaces for 13 or more for senators on a ballot under the automated polls will invalidate all votes cast for senators. The same is true for all positions, particularly in those that require voting for several candidates.
Unlike in past elections wherein voters write out the names of their candidates, there could be a tendency for voters in the coming polls to over-vote by merely shading the oval spaces next to the names of all the senatorial bets already printed out on the ballots, Guia said.
In such cases, all the votes cast for senators would not be counted by the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines that Smartmatic-TIM will provide to voting precincts nationwide. “But the votes for other candidates would be counted,” he added.
Using cellphones for “codigos”, however, is now out of the question after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) issued a resolution banning cell phones and cameras in polling precincts on election day. Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said that taking photographs in voting centers could be used for vote selling and buying.
“They might take photographs of their ballots and then show them to candidates,” he said. Violators can be arrested by “any peace officer” after casting their ballots, Sarmiento said.
Under Resolution 8739, voters must also use a ballot secrecy folder and marking pen provided by the Comelec.
Earlier, Comelec Chairman Jose Melo also said the PCOS machines would still read ovals with at least 60 percent shading to count for the corresponding candidate. Otherwise , the vote would not count.
At the same time, Gregorio also said that apart from the PCOS machines and corresponding standby batteries for them, Smartmatic-TIM is also providing municipal and city-level election centers with one “back-up power generator” each.
“At least 1,700 such generators have already arrived,” he said, even as he lamented continuing doubts on the efficiency of the automated polls system. “We have a redundancy of power back ups,” he noted.
Gregorio said “we have considered every angle for contingencies” that that thus, “no one should scare the public anymore.”
Smartmatic-TIM was contracted by Comelec to deliver a total of 82,200 PCOS machines for the May 10 polls at a cost of P7.2 billion. The Comelec is expecting the joint venture to make full delivery by Feb. 21.
An estimated 80,000 polling precincts will be established across the country, with around 2,200 machines as spare.
Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said the machines would be stored at a warehouse in Cabuyao, Laguna and that the machines would be configured and installed with software after passing the tests.
“It (codigo) is a must for voters,” Smartmatic-TIM spokesperson and public relations manager Gene Gregorio told Punto! in a telephone interview yesterday. The word “codigo” is usually used by students to refer to any material used for cheating during class examinations.
“It would also be useful for political parties to provide sample ballots which voters can use to assist them in voting,” he said.
Gregorio said that an education campaign on the automated polls should carry “two key messages”, namely, that voting will be easy and that voters would be cautious about over-voting.
In a recent seminar held by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), election lawyer Louie Guia warned that shading spaces for 13 or more for senators on a ballot under the automated polls will invalidate all votes cast for senators. The same is true for all positions, particularly in those that require voting for several candidates.
Unlike in past elections wherein voters write out the names of their candidates, there could be a tendency for voters in the coming polls to over-vote by merely shading the oval spaces next to the names of all the senatorial bets already printed out on the ballots, Guia said.
In such cases, all the votes cast for senators would not be counted by the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines that Smartmatic-TIM will provide to voting precincts nationwide. “But the votes for other candidates would be counted,” he added.
Using cellphones for “codigos”, however, is now out of the question after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) issued a resolution banning cell phones and cameras in polling precincts on election day. Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said that taking photographs in voting centers could be used for vote selling and buying.
“They might take photographs of their ballots and then show them to candidates,” he said. Violators can be arrested by “any peace officer” after casting their ballots, Sarmiento said.
Under Resolution 8739, voters must also use a ballot secrecy folder and marking pen provided by the Comelec.
Earlier, Comelec Chairman Jose Melo also said the PCOS machines would still read ovals with at least 60 percent shading to count for the corresponding candidate. Otherwise , the vote would not count.
At the same time, Gregorio also said that apart from the PCOS machines and corresponding standby batteries for them, Smartmatic-TIM is also providing municipal and city-level election centers with one “back-up power generator” each.
“At least 1,700 such generators have already arrived,” he said, even as he lamented continuing doubts on the efficiency of the automated polls system. “We have a redundancy of power back ups,” he noted.
Gregorio said “we have considered every angle for contingencies” that that thus, “no one should scare the public anymore.”
Smartmatic-TIM was contracted by Comelec to deliver a total of 82,200 PCOS machines for the May 10 polls at a cost of P7.2 billion. The Comelec is expecting the joint venture to make full delivery by Feb. 21.
An estimated 80,000 polling precincts will be established across the country, with around 2,200 machines as spare.
Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said the machines would be stored at a warehouse in Cabuyao, Laguna and that the machines would be configured and installed with software after passing the tests.
