2025 MIDTERM ELECTIONS WILL NO LONGER BE SWINDLE, COMELEC

The Comelec and the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) inspected the automated counting machines that will be used for the 2025 midterm election. The Comelec is assured that the machines will not be fraud.

From the speed of ballot entry to the hardware itself, KBP officials together with the Comelec checked the Automated Counting Machine (ACM) one by one. This is the first time that the machines that will be used in the midterm elections on May 12, 2025 have been made public.

Demonstration and testing of automated counting machines (Photo courtesy of Mike Alquinto/The Manila Times)

After a few months of evaluating Meru's prototype machines, it is said that the thickness of the documents for those modified or customized by the Comelec to be used in the ACM in the 2025 midterm elections has reached one span, something that Meru has complied with and is being tested again by the government.

It is said that some changes to be made in ACM were seen when some Comelec Commissioners visited the Meru System plant in South Korea last month.

"For example, the camera, instead of being on top, should be placed underneath so that our countrymen do not suspect that they are being photographed. Or for example, the receptacle itself, the receipt holder that used to be in the back, is now on the side at the front and there are many more," George Garcia Comelec Chairman stated.

The Comelec insists that all their wish lists have been followed, the previous batch of ACMs is now being checked by various government agencies. Among those being looked at is its stability in the Philippine climate.

At the same time, the Comelec clarified that there is no transparency server today compared to the past elections. 

"When there was a mess with transparency, there was an issue, 7 hours there was a glitch, we no longer have a source of results. Now not anymore, all media entities can be taken from the media server, or can be compared. Get it from KBP, get it from PPCRB, get it from NAMFREL, get it from the majority party, minority party, send to all in every precinct," Garcia added.

The pride of the Comelec it is unlikely that the machines will be deceived, they say that the only things disturbing the results of the polls are vote-buying, violence, and terrorism. Hacking is also closely monitored, because in the Comelec's record, 35 million hacking attempts were recorded when they opened the precinct finder within two weeks during the 2022 elections.

In December 2023, there were also 3 million hacking attempts on the Comelec website while 400,000 in April. But the agency has stopped it. 

Garcia said, “We should be concerned because as more and more people hack, there is a possibility that they will suddenly become successful. So, the training and coordination with other government agencies must continue."

The public is currently being encouraged to register. About 4.2 million voters were removed from the voter list because they did not vote in the election two times in a row.

Source: The Manila Times

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