The biggest setback in the poll automation project for the May 2010 elections is the delayed delivery of the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) voting machines, a government IT expert said Wednesday.
In an interview with ANC's On The Scene, Ray Anthony Roxas-Chua, chairman of the Commission on Information and Communication Technology (CICT), said the delayed delivery of the machines resulted in the adjustment of the entire automation calendar, raising concerns on the fate of what could be the first fully automated elections in the country.
The CICT has been working closely with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to address potential technology and information technology-related problems.
The winning consortium, Smartmatic-TIM, has to deliver a total of 82,000 PCOS machines for the national elections in May. The target schedule of deliveries has been hampered by various issues, including typhoons that battered Taiwan where the factory originally commissioned to manufacture the machines was based.
As of end-2009, Smartmatic-TIM has delivered at least 7,000 PCOS machines--30,000 short of the agreed number of machines to be delivered by the end of 2009.
Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal told reporters Wednesday that they are expecting 10,000 more voting machines, now being manufactured in China, to arrive on January 12.
Back-up Yet, Chua assured that the full automation of the upcoming national elections is still on track.
"We knew this is not going to be easy. Of course we've seen some setback in terms of the delays in schedule, but as far as we understand, we are still on track to do a 100% automation for next year's elections,"
Chua added: "The scenario of no-elections is not going to happen. It's just a matter of how quickly can we address [the delays]."
The delayed delivery of the machines has affected even the crucial training for teachers who will man the polls.
He said that the Comelec should immediately start training teachers on how to use the machines as soon as the machines arrive.
"The training obviously would have been better if they started as early as possible. But with the [delayed delivery of the] machines, everything is pushed back," Chua said.
He added that the Comelec would have to make do "with the time that we have remaining."
If ever the machines delivery is further delayed, making the full automation impossible, he assured that the Comelec is ready with several backups.
"We've always told the Comelec that they should be prepared for all contingencies... We need to have a back up, and they are prepared with all the contingencies," he said.
Chua added that the Comelec's backup plans include the full manual elections.
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