Comelec’s claim of poll success ‘too good to be true’ – KMU

The speed by which the country’s first ever automated elections is coming up with results is being greeted with approval by various sectors of society. The Comelec is celebrating a high voters’ turnout of 75%.

This is too good to be true. What is seemingly being papered over by the euphoria are the following:

>> PCOS machine failures – such as paper jam, rejection of ballots and other technical glitches –  made the long queues outside polling precints worse and deprived voters of their right to vote. Massive disenfranchisement probably occurred.

>> Also, with PCOS machines not functioning, accomplished ballots were just left in the hands of the BEIs, with some even left lying on the corner of the room for anyone to see and tamper with. This undermines the credibility of the poll results.

>> Disenfranchisement due to other reasons – harassment of voters by police and military forces entering precints, vote-buying in various forms and magnitudes in different regions

>> Numerous reports of pre-shaded ballots - a new form of cheating which comes with the automated polls

>> The results of last week’s tests on the PCOS machines, which imperiled the holding of the elections and seriously undermined its credibility, and the haste with which the Comelec was forced to replace the PCOS machines’ memory card all cast doubt to the credibility of the automated election results

>> The seeming irrelevance of election watchdogs in monitoring and pinpointing irregularities in the counting of ballots because of the automated character of the counting.

>> Poll violence and tension reaching alarming levels without much attention given by different sectors. Cases of strafing, gunfight and even a shooting in broad daylight which killed two persons in Bacoor, Cavite do not make this year’s election less violent than previous polls.

The numerous problems and weaknesses in the recent elections, and the culpability for these of the Arroyo regime, the Comelec and Smartmatic-TIM must not be ignored. Experts agree that they have undermined the credibility of the elections long before May 10. This must not be forgotten amidst the euphoria over the elections right now.

Perhaps more evidence that run counter to the "All's well that ends well" scenario that is being painted today will emerge in the coming days.